Stat Attack: How Good Was Ethan Erhahon’s Debut?

Saturday’s win was a relief, a monkey off the Imps’ back, and it saw the debut of a young man who looks very promising.

When Lincoln City pay cash for a player, it usually means he’s got a bit about him. Cohen Bramall moved on for a profit, as did Scully and Edun. Robson came and went for a fee, rather than leaving for nothing, and whilst Poole may well end up walking away, he has been nothing but a credit to the club. Under the current recruitment system, very rarely do we buy a player who does not have significant potential or impact.

In this window, we paid a decent sum for Ethan Erhahon. I won’t speculate as to how much, but it’s safe to assume it is a six-figure fee, and it tops the current recorded record purchase of £75,000. Of course, there have been signings in the age of the undisclosed fee which likely topped that already, but there’s no doubt Erhahon is a significant outlay for the club. He impressed on his debut, grabbing the club’s Man of the Match in a close-run thing with Ben House. He’s currently ranking at 8.80 here on the site, making him your Man of the Match as well.

🏅 A Man of the Match award on his Imps debut!

👇Use one word to describe Ethan Erhahon's performance!#WeAreImps https://t.co/yX3InbIR5X pic.twitter.com/wsZeWLLafj

— Lincoln City FC 🇺🇦 (@LincolnCity_FC) February 4, 2023

I’ve watched the game back, and I was thoroughly impressed with him – I know there’s going to be a bit of a running joke now on the podcast at how quickly I’ve taken to Erhahon, but he reminded me of a young Liam Bridcutt. I could see him delivering everything we need, and whilst one game doesn’t make a season, if he does turn out to be consistent, he could be huge for us.

Am I right? Was his debut that impressive, or did he stand out because he did the things others have not this season? I decided to test that theory with a completely flawed stats piece. I’ve taken some key numbers from his one game and compared them to the averages for our other midfielders this season.

It won’t mean he’s better or worse than those players; it won’t mean anything at all other than giving you an impression of how he did. The average totals for the other players include us playing against different teams, getting more opportunities to tackle, for instance (Accrington didn’t really threaten), but with Erhahon, perhaps getting more opportunity to pass forward. I just thought it would be fun to compare.

I’ll show Ethan’s numbers compared to the best from this season for each stat. All numbers are per 90 minutes, which is why Ethan’s are decimals.

Succesful Defensive Actions

Ethan Erhahon v Accrington – 8.74

Lasse Sorensen’s season average – 9.28

Interceptions

Ethan Erhahon v Accrington – 4.37

Lasse Sorensen’s season average – 4.39

There are a couple of points to consider for interceptions and defensive actions. A player facing Ipswich, Barnsley or Southampton should have significantly more defensive actions to complete than one facing a really poor Accrington side. With that in mind, Erhahon’s numbers are impressive, although obviously players such as Lasse have good and bad games factored into an overall average.

It may surprise some to find that Lasse’s numbers are the best out of our current midfielders. As a worker, Lasse is second to none, and whilst some of his technique lets him down, his effort can never be questioned. Someone once said to me he is the exact opposite of what you’d expect a young European player dropping out of the Premier League to be!

I think as a debut, for Ethan’s numbers to come close to the best average across the whole midfield is impressive. Can he maintain that, and be as effective against teams such as Derby on Tuesday, who will have a lot of the ball? We shall see.

Forward Passes

Ethan Erhahon v Accrington – 18.35

Matty Virtue’s season average – 13.24

No surprise that, in terms of forward passes, he showed as much intent as any midfielder we’ve had all season. Of course, there’s the fact we were playing poor opposition, but his numbers clearly show a desire to get on the ball and move it forward. Given how many groans we’ve heard at the Bank of late along the lines of ‘forwards for feck’s sake’, it’s only good that Ethan knows what that means!

Shot Assists

Ethan Erhahon v Accrington – 1.75

Max Sanders’s season average- 0.61

The one caveat here is we had far more shots against Accrington than in any game as far back as Bristol Rovers (I think), and therefore this might look good for Ethan, but it doesn’t automatically mean that’ll be his season average. For every Accrington away, there’s been a Charlton or Cambridge at home this season, which is why Max, the next-best provider, is much lower. Dare I say, with a player like Ethan in the team; I expect the likes of Ted Bishop to see his numbers increase as well.

Passes to Final Third

Ethan Erhahon v Accrington – 4.37

Lasse Sorensen’s season average – 6.62

There’s a shock, right? Lasse is our best central midfielder on the numbers I’ve selected. He started the season well, but I think the fact that he made way for Ethan underlines how good our new boy really is. There was no doubt, no easing him in gently, and we saw what he could do as a result. It’ll be fascinating to revisit these numbers in May.

Totals