Pascal Gross was both cheap and creative – he ticks all the boxes for Newcastle United then.
There’s a tendency to treat the ‘Moneyball’ approach to recruitment with a great deal of suspicion. And it’s certainly a valid point to argue that scrolling through a screen of stats tells you far less about a player than watching him in person.
Yet, the likes of Dimitri Payet (most chances created in Europe in 2014/15) and N’Golo Kante (most tackles in Ligue 1 in 2014/15) are prime examples of how statistics can lead to some inspired bargain signings.
Just ask Brighton. Pascal Gross ranked as the most creative player in the entirety of the Bundesliga last season, laying on 95 chances for his team-mates. And that was in an Ingolstadt side who were relegated to the second tier.
Gross has maintained that remarkable output at Brighton. The German has tallied five assists in 11 Premier League games for a largely workmanlike Seagulls side. He has either scored or created seven of their 11 Premier League goals.
Not bad for £3 million (Sky Sports).
Gross negligence
Though Brighton pulling off arguably the bargain of the season should lead to questions about their Premier League competitors. Why, for example, did a Newcastle United side lacking creativity from central positions and restricted by a limited budget not make a move for the 26-year-old Gross?
The Northern Echo reported on Wednesday that Newcastle are planning to revive their interest in Fulham’s Tom Cairney despite having a club-record £20 million bid rejected in the summer. This is perhaps a response to a run of one win, and four goals, in six league games prior to the international break.
Gross, however, would have solved Rafa Benitez’s creative conundrum while hardly burning a hole in Mike Ashley’s back pocket.
Failing to even make a move for the Brighton schemer is, in many ways, gross negligence from Newcastle.
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