Sheffield Wednesday, Fulham, Nottingham Forest, Reading and Huddersfield can boast the best passers in the Championship so far this season.
Fulham midfielder Scott Parker
The Championship is a division with a real variety of styles and approaches to the game, from teams who like to play a possession-based game to teams who like to go a lot more direct. It is no surprise to see five of the teams who are most renowned for getting the ball down and knocking it around nicely occupying all of the top 10 places on this list.
Sheffield Wednesday, Fulham, Nottingham Forest, Reading and Huddersfield are five of the best footballing teams in the Championship. Wednesday have a number of ball-playing midfielders and are unsurprisingly persisting with a style which took them to within 90 minutes of the Premier League last season.
Reading have the highest average possession in the Championship under Jaap Stam, followed by Fulham – who played good football even when they were batting relegation last season, simply struggling due to their extremely leaky defence. Huddersfield are also playing very attractive football under David Wagner, whilst Forest are blessed with some gifted midfielders. The full top 10 is below:
Sheffield Wednesday’s Sam Hutchinson is among the league leaders for pass accuracy
1. Scott Parker (Fulham): 92%
2. Tom Cairney (Fulham): 92%
3. Almen Abdi (Sheffield Wednesday): 92%
4. Danny Williams (Reading): 90%
5. Sam Hutchinson (Sheffield Wednesday): 90%
6. Tomas Kalas (Fulham): 89%
7. Jonathan Hogg (Huddersfield Town): 88%
8. Kevin McDonald (Fulham): 88%
9. Michael Mancienne (Nottingham Forest): 88%
10. Michael Madl (Fulham): 88%
Fulham have an incredible 5 players in the top 10
As you can see, when it comes to passing accuracy, Fulham are in a league of their own in the Championship, occupying half of the top 10. Sheffield Wednesday are the only other club to have more than one player rank among the top 10, with former Watford midfielder Almen Abdi and ex-Chelsea youth team player Sam Hutchinson both ranking among the league’s best.
No player has higher passing accuracy than 35-year-old Scott Parker, the former England international has had a good start to the season with Fulham and the 2011 FWA Player of the Year is proving he is still a quality player.
Fulham teammate Tom Cairney’s inclusion will surprise few people, the graceful midfielder who has an excellent left foot is one of the most naturally gifted central midfielders in England’s second tier. Tomas Kalas, Kevin McDonald and Michael Madl are the other three Fulham players to be included.
Sheffield Wednesday’s Almen Abdi has completed 92% of his passes
The top 10 includes four defenders, six midfielders and no forwards. It takes into account only players who have attempted more than 100 passes in the opening 10 games of the Championship season.
Sheffield Wednesday duo Almen Abdi and Sam Hutchinson are likely to remain in the top 10 throughout the season; with Abdi being a quality player at Championship level, Hutchinson playing in defence despite being capable of playing in midfield and both playing in a team likely to see a lot of the ball.
Huddersfield Town’s Jonathan Hogg ranked among the top 10 in the Championship for passing accuracy last season, so one can expect him to remain among the best in the league in a much-improved Huddersfield team this season. Danny Williams of Reading is also repeating his form of recent seasons, consistently among the most accurate passers in the league.
Who is the best passer in the Championship?
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