What Wilfred Ndidi must add to his game to become ‘world-class’

The term ‘world class’ is often subjective and somewhat controversial because there is no consensus on the requirements to earn that tag. The closest definition to accuracy is that a world-class player is one who can play for any team in the world.

By that definition, Nigeria has no world-class players right now, but the closest to entering that elite category is Wilfred Ndidi.

The 25-year-old defensive midfielder excels in many aspects of his game and is among the best in the world in that position as it stands.

In 2754 minutes of football this season, Ndidi has built even further on his reputation as an elite tackler, having completed 4 tackles per game, a statistic that puts him in the top 1% in the world for that category.

Ndidi led the Premier League in tackles for the 17/18 and 18/19 seasons and has ranked second and fourth in each of the last two seasons respectively.

The numbers show that Ndidi is not just a high-volume tackler but an incredibly efficient one too as he has never finished outside the top three in his four full Premier League seasons.

Ndidi pressures the ball 22.68 times per game which is better than 83% of other midfielders in the world, he blocks 1.86 shots per game which is better than 76% of his colleagues and he wins 2.45 aerial balls per game; better than 89% of his competition.

The Nigerian midfielder also ranks in the top 3% for clearances and top 5% for interceptions in the world, in this regard, he is most definitely elite.

All of that is established but this is more about what Ndidi needs to add to his game and not what he already excels at. 

There is a reason Ndidi is still at Leicester City at 25 years old and that is because most elite teams want more than just tackles and interceptions from their defensive midfielders.

Ndidi’s attributes are fantastic and would help any team but his surprising inability to progress the ball is a major hindrance exemplified by his weak ball progression stats.

The stats show that Wilfred carries the ball forward 2.29 times per game which puts him in the bottom 13% among his peers, a rather worrying stat for someone of Ndidi’s build.

He is relatively pacy, with long legs that enable him to stride forward in Yaya Toure-like fashion but for whatever reason, he is just content winning the ball and passing sideways or backwards.

Ndidi only plays 2.94 progressive passes per game which puts him in the bottom 23% among midfielders, these stats highlight the major flaw in Ndidi’s game.

He clearly has a profile, Ndidi is a tackler and ball winner, one of the best around at that too, no one is trying to change that, he is not expected to morph into Cesc Fabregas overnight and start tearing up opposing defences with a barrage of line-breaking passes.

This is simply a call for Ndidi to add something extra to his game, for starters he could attempt more than 54.60 passes per 90 minutes which he currently does now, which is slightly above average, 60% in comparison to similar players.

There is no need to go into his low goals and assists output or his non-existent dribbling stats because those deviate too far away from his primary responsibilities.

But if Wilfred Ndidi is ever going to be ‘world-class’ and attract the interest of the very best clubs in the world, the Nigerian midfielder has to add something extra to his game.