OT: When analytics goes horribly wrong - Tottenham Hotspurs (link)

I thought this article on the Tottenham soccer club being relegated from the Premier League was interesting because the owners/management went heavy on analytics and seem to have forgotten the basics of the sport. It's create a shambles of a team. This is one of the premier clubs in all of English soccer. There are only 6 of them in the entire league. Then there are 7 or 8 other stalwarts. And 20 other teams that go in and out of the top flight. I can't remember the last time one of the big 6 was relegated to a lower league (I just checked, 2000 was the last time, Manchester City; but that was before Man City became a juggernaut; Chelsea in 1987 was the previous one of the big 6).

This article lays much of the blame on analytics.

I know we had this discussion when the Patriots were deciding between JuJu and Jakobi. The analytics boys loved that JuJu YAC. But on the field, staying on schedule seems to matter more and boring Jakobi helps the team excel at that.

upstater1 said:

I thought this article on the Tottenham soccer club being relegated from the Premier League was interesting

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*Six games left in their season.

Harry Kane's exit has had the same impact on Tottenham as Brady's exit here in NE.
Kane has scored more than twice as many Bundesliga goals (57) during his past 2 seasons there than that league's next highest scorer, not to mention Bayern Munich has reclaimed Bundesliga supremacy twice since Kane was signed.

High scorer for TOT has 9 goals this year.

Analytics can be a powerful tool, but it isn't the be all and end all in player evaluation. You still need to scout players and investigate them. Analytics can only tell you so much.

I'd be delighted to see Spurs get relegated.

As a supporter of a similar sized club that has seen Spurs get preferential media and Premier League treatment for years, on top of Spurs trying to get a breakaway league formed against every football fans wishes, it would be extremely sweet to see them banished to the Championship.

Rob0729 said:

Analytics can be a powerful tool, but it isn't the be all and end all in player evaluation. You still need to scout players and investigate them. Analytics can only tell you so much.

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I think the problem is bigger than that. It's not a matter of a faulty player evaluation. It's a matter of a failed philosophy. The players they brought in are exactly as advertised analytically. Big strong and fast. High work rate.

They can't complete passes.

So this is more about style clashing with analytics. It's why I made the American football comparison. 1st downs are more important than YAC.

Analytics are really bad at accounting for team chemistry and leadership.

upstater1 said:

I think the problem is bigger than that. It's not a matter of a faulty player evaluation. It's a matter of a failed philosophy. The players they brought in are exactly as advertised analytically. Big strong and fast. High work rate.

They can't complete passes.

So this is more about style clashing with analytics. It's why I made the American football comparison. 1st downs are more important than YAC.

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But that is the point of using analytics as a tool that is paired with traditional scouting and other ways to analyze players. Analytics can only show so much. And it can be misleading without other information to get the bigger picture.

Rob0729 said:

But that is the point of using analytics as a tool that is paired with traditional scouting and other ways to analyze players. Analytics can only show so much. And it can be misleading without other information to get the bigger picture.

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Yes, I totally understand what you're saying and agree. I'm only saying that coaching and philosophy are even more important.