Manchester City must decide which version of Savinho they believe in
There are almost two completely different stories to tell when analysing Savinho’s recent season at Manchester City.
Across the Premier League and UEFA Champions League, the Brazilian often looked like a player still searching for his place within Pep Guardiola’s system.
AdvertisementAdvertisementYet in the domestic cup competitions, he has appeared transformed; more confident, more direct and, crucially, more productive. Of course, context is important.
In the Premier League, 17 of Savinho’s 24 appearances came from the bench, amounting to just 821 minutes. In the Champions League, three of his seven appearances were substitute outings, with only 369 minutes played overall. Consistent starts often allow attacking players to establish rhythm and confidence, something Savinho has rarely been afforded in league competition.
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The numbers from Europe’s premier competition are intriguing. Savinho completed dribbles at a success rate of 61.5%, outperforming 83% of players, while his 58% duel success rate ranked above 88% of his peers. On the surface, these are the statistics of a winger capable of causing serious problems for opposition defences.
The problem came with what followed.
AdvertisementAdvertisementDespite regularly beating defenders, Savinho produced only a single assist and created eight chances across the campaign. His underlying dribbling figures suggest a player progressing the ball into dangerous areas, yet the final action was too often missing. For all the excitement generated by his ball carrying, there was little tangible reward.
The Premier League paints an even harsher picture.
His dribble success rate of 32.1% ranked lower than 72% of players, while he won only 40.6% of his duels and created just nine chances all season. One goal from 20 shots and a solitary assist summed up a league campaign that never truly managed to gather momentum.
This is where things become interesting.
AdvertisementAdvertisementIn the FA Cup, virtually every major metric improved.
Savinho averaged 0.65 goals per 90 minutes, completed 3.88 successful dribbles per 90 and won almost 10 duels per game. His influence on matches was immediately apparent. He saw significantly more of the ball and ranked among the competition’s elite for touches inside the opposition box, suggesting a player far more involved in attacking phases than his league performances often indicated.
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The sample size remains small, but the trend is difficult to ignore. Whether the explanation is confidence, greater familiarity with teammates, more consistent starts or simply the level of opposition remains unclear. What is clear is that Savinho looked far closer to the player Manchester City believed they were signing.
The same pattern emerged in the Carabao Cup.
Two goals in two appearances delivered an average of 1.04 goals per 90 minutes. His dribbling reached its highest level of the season at 4.68 successful take-ons per game, while his involvement in possession increased further still. Even defensively there was greater engagement, averaging 1.56 tackles per 90 minutes.
Taken in isolation, neither cup campaign provides enough evidence to draw definitive conclusions. Together, however, they raise a fascinating question.
Which version of Savinho is the real one?
The player who struggled to translate possession into productivity in the Premier League? Or the winger who repeatedly dominated domestic cup matches when afforded a run of starts?
AdvertisementAdvertisementThat uncertainty leaves Manchester City facing an increasingly important decision.
Reports linking Tottenham with a move worth around £60 million present a genuine dilemma. The talent is clearly there. At just 22 years old, Savinho possesses the technical ability, acceleration and ball-carrying qualities that cannot easily be taught. What remains unproven is whether he can consistently deliver those attributes at the highest level.
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With Antoine Semenyo arriving and Jeremy Doku already established as one of the Premier League’s most explosive dribblers, competition for places is only becoming fiercer. Minutes may become harder to find, but equally opportunities to develop may become increasingly limited.
That leaves City with a difficult balancing act.
AdvertisementAdvertisementSell now and they risk watching a talented young winger fulfil his potential elsewhere. Keep him and they may spend another season waiting for promise to become production.
The statistics suggest both outcomes remain entirely possible. That uncertainty, more than anything else, explains why Savinho’s future could become one of the most intriguing subplots of Manchester City’s summer.
Badenoch blasts 'moaning' female Labour MPs over Burnham jobs 'quota'
Kemi Badenoch has told Labour women to earn a job in Andy Burnham's Cabinet instead of demanding they are handed jobs because of their gender.
The Tory leader lashed out today amid reports that female MPs are demanding the de-facto new prime minister introduce a 50:50 gender split 'quota' in his government.
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister also complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts.
But in a scathing article in the Times today Mrs Badenoch told them to 'stop moaning' and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'.
'There are many, many reasons why you shouldn't have any Milibands in the cabinet,' she said.
'But complaining that the boys haven't given them the right jobs or that the boys are taking all the jobs, just shows that Labour's women still don't get it.'
The idea of quotas was also attacked by Baroness Jacqui Smith, Labour's Skills Minister.
Asked by Times Radio if Mr Burnham should reserve jobs for women, she said: 'No, I think what Andy Burnham should be doing is building the very best team around him to change this country.'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband (above, right, in 2010) is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts
But Mrs Badenoch told them to pipe down and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party and seen by the BBC has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs after he succeeds Sir Keir Starmer.
'We are asking you to demonstrate this change from day one and address the toxicity and misogyny within our own party and government,' it said.
Labour has never had a female leader, while the Conservatives have had three, and Mrs Badenoch urged the government to follow its meritocratic example.
'If you run a meritocracy, then you do not have to worry about jobs for the boys,' she wrote.
'Every woman who is a Conservative MP, every woman who has ever won the leadership, has had to fight to get where she is.
'By contrast, Labour women are demanding guarantees from Burnham. But the truth is he doesn't have to give any guarantees.
'If none of Labour's women are prepared to get their hands dirty and challenge him for the leadership, their demands are toothless.'
'In fact, it's quite revealing that the women's parliamentary Labour Party has written to Burnham asking him to commit himself to at least 50 per cent female ministers.
'This has nothing to do with meritocracy. It is yet more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country.'
