West Ham wanted to replace Carlton Cole with Tottenham’s Emmanuel Adebayor, but is there really much difference between the two?
Is there really a great difference between Carlton Cole and Emmanuel Adebayor?
Figures taken from statistics across the last three Premier League seasons suggest not.
The Mail reported this week how West Ham cancelled Cole’s transfer to West Brom, after Spurs had decided to block the Hammers attempt to sign Adebayor, not willing to loan the striker to a club they consider a rival.
Former star Tony Cottee even told the Romford Recorder he felt Adebayor did not offer much more than Cole, and the figures back him up.
| Team | Mins per goal | Scoring V Shooting Accuracy | Aerial Duels won % | Mins per being dispossessed | Mins per missing big chance | Appearances | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carlton Cole | West Ham | 266.3 | 15% | 43.26 | 30.61 | 295.89 | 65 |
| Emmanuel Adebayor | Tottenham | 233.44 | 17% | 38.17 | 26.59 | 191 | 57 |
Adebayor does edge the figures in terms of his minutes per goal ratio and scoring accuracy, but only narrowly. Just two per cent separates their conversion rate.
Cole wins a better percentage of his aerial duels, and Adebayor also loses possession more frequently. The Togolese striker is also more wasteful in front of goal – missing a big chance every 191 minutes as opposed to Cole, every 295.
There are surely bridges to mend between Cole and his manager Sam Allardyce, with the striker claimed by The Mail to be fuming after his switch was cancelled, but he can still play a role between now and the end of the current season.
There is little across the past three seasons on the evidence above that it is a role Adebayor would have fufilled much better.
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