Two great mates. Two absolute stars of the Hyundai A-League. Besart Berisha versus Thomas Broich is just one of the fascinating sub-plots to Sunday’s Semi Final in Melbourne when Victory host Roar.
They both have legitimate claims to the title of best-ever Hyundai A-League import.
The competition’s greatest ever goalscorer Besart Berisha and one of its most decorated individual players Thomas Broich.Â
And on Sunday, they try to drive their sides to the 2016/17 Grand Final.
Who is more influential – Victory’s Bes or Roar’s Broich?
PASSING
Broich has made 873 passes to Berisha’s 631 this season with the German making 43.5 passes per 90 minutes, compared to 24.8 from the Kosovo international.
Berisha’s accuracy is slightly better though at 79%, compared to Broich’s 75%.
In the opposition half, Berisha’s accuracy is 77.31% and Broich’s 72.56%.
This can perhaps be explained in part though by the length of the passes played by each, with only 1% of Berisha’s passes being long ones, compared to 5% of Broich’s.
CHANCE CREATION
Broich has created 57 chances compared to Berisha with 33.
Broich has supplied five assists for his team-mates while Berisha has provided four.
And while Berisha’s 19 goals leaves Broich’s two in the dust, his shooting accuracy is also very impressive with 58.2% of his efforts on target, compared to 52.9% by the Roar man.
THREAT TO OPPOSITION
A good indicator of the danger a player presents is how often he is fouled.
Broich has been fouled 46 times by opposition players while Berisha has won 33 free-kicks.
And with ball at feet, Berisha has been on 20 successful dribbles while Broich has embarked on just one fewer.
DISCIPLINE
Berisha has conceded 34 fouls this season and Broich just 17.
And despite a combustible reputation, Berisha has earned just two yellow cards and had his sole red card rescinded.
Broich has been booked only once, just his eighth yellow card in seven Hyundai A-League seasons.
MOTIVATION
This category can’t be quantified with statistics.
But it certainly comes into play.
Thomas Broich knows when Roar are knocked out of the Finals Series, his Brisbane career comes to an end.
He’ll want nothing more than to go out with another Championship. He’s already stated that – he wants a fourth Championship.Â
But Berisha is one of the most motivated players in the A-League, full-stop.
His seemingly unquenchable thirst for goals and silverware ensures his whole-hearted commitment from the first to last whistle.
The fact he’s playing his former side just adds to the mix.