Why Benoit Badiashile should be high on centre-back wishlists this summer
William Saliba was the star young defender in Ligue 1 last season. The France international was always going to be the focus of attention in France's top tier given his Arsenal links and his fine performances for Marseille saw him scoop the Young Player of the Year award. However, while Saliba was the focus of attenion, a fellow young centre-back flew under the radar.
That's not to say Benoit Badiashile didn't excel for Monaco last term, but rather his exploits were overlooked as a result of Saliba's superb showings under Jorge Sampaoli. Nevertheless, Badiashile is still highly thought of this side of the channel and interest in his services from Premier League sides shouldn't come as a surprise.
Monaco of course do rate the 21-year-old highly and while he started just 21 league games last season, that was due to a couple of hamstring injuries and a bout of COVID-19. When fit, Badiashile is one of the first names on the team sheet for Philippe Clement's side.
The departure of Aurelien Tchouameni will have hurt Monaco, the French midfielder one of the top performers in Ligue 1 last season, so they'll be eager to retain Badiashile's services, but with big spending Premier League sides tipped to bolster at the back, they will be aware that the young defender is set to be the subject of intense interest this summer.
Fortunately for Monaco is that Badiashile has two years left to run on his current deal, so they can command a hefty fee for the defender, who'll be in high demand should they elect to sell. This is in part due to Badiashile being predominantly left footed. Teams nowadays are seeking for greater balance at the back by partnering a right footed centre-back with one who favours their left. The likes of Alessandro Bastoni, Josko Gvardiol and Lisandro Martinez have all emerged as targets for top teams as a result, with Badiashile another who fits the bill.
What immediately stands out about Badiashile is his size and at just shy of 6'4", he puts his height to exceptional use. Indeed, of the 139 payers that contested 50 or more aerial duels, only Marcelo (82.4%) had a better aerial success rate than Badiashile (77%). If opponents do go direct against Monaco, then the towering centre-back is able to deny teams that do launch an aerial bombardment.
The Premier League is viewed as one of the more physical leagues in Europe, but with Badiashile not afraid to throw his weight around to protect the Monaco goal, he'd quickly adjust to the rigours of English football. Yet it's important to not view Badiashile as a bruising centre-back as there is the cultured side to his game that has helped his stock soar.
With the evergrowing need for centre-backs to play the ball out from the back, Badiashile carries out these duties well. He ranked first for passes per 90 (67.4) and second for pass success rate (87.9%) of all Monaco players in Ligue 1 last season as he played his part in building attacks from defence. It's little wonder, then, that Badiashile's two statistically calculated WhoScored strengths are 'aerial duels' and 'passing'.
Crucially is that he sought to get the ball forward where possible to help Monaco dominate opponents. 20.1 forward passes per game was the 19th best of outfielders in Ligue 1 last season, while 35% of his total passes also went forward. If Monaco need to be patient in their build up, then Badiashile has this in his locker, but when they are desperate to make their superiority count, then the youngster was more than willing to quickly set the French side on the front foot.
In addition, no matter whether teammates are near or far, Badiashile is able to play his part in quick transitions, with a return of four accurate long balls per 90 the 32nd best return of outfield players in France's top tier last term. This is a hugely desirable trait in any modern day centre-back, and one that has seen Badiashile's value continue to rise.
When it did come to protecting the Monaco goal, he performed admirably, utilising his commendable reading of the game to limit opponents with 1.4 interceptions per 90 testament to that. Able to be in the right place at the right time, Badiashile was again proactive where required as he made 3.3 clearances and 1.8 tackles per 90 to help Monaco to one of the best defensive records in Ligue 1 last season.
That said, at his age, there comes moments of madness, but that is to be expected for a player who, despite clocking up 95 league appearances, is still inexperienced at this level. Since his breakout season in 2019/20, only Stefan Mitrovic (5) has committed more errors leading to an opposition goal of outfield players than Badiashile (4), though it is worth noting the most recent of these came in October 2020, so mistakes are far less frequent now than when he first broke onto the scene.
Even so, there are rough edges to his game that need ironing out, as is the case with any young player, but Badiashile has all the tools to establish himself as a top quality centre-back. Teams seeking to bring in a left footed centre-back this summer would be wise to keep tabs on the Monaco star.
