Background information:
Michy Batshuayi opened the scoring with a razor-sharp turn and finish and added another just before half-time in Marseille's impressive 6-1 win away to Toulouse on Friday. After that two-goal salvo, the 21-year-old will be hopeful of retaining his place in Marcelo Bielsa's starting XI for the trip to league leaders Olympique Lyonnais this coming weekend.
Batshuayi's path to Ligue 1 has been far from smooth. He was born in Brussels to Congolese parents, and joined the Anderlecht academy at 13 following spells at R.F.C. Evere, RUSA Schaerbeek and FC Brussels. However, while his talent was clear, the coaching staff soon grew frustrated at his attitude and lack of discipline, and he was released a year later. After a period back at FC Brussels, he joined Standard Liege in 2008.
It was there that the young forward, nicknamed "Batman," made his senior debut in 2011 and would eventually become a regular scorer, but acts of indiscipline nevertheless continued to follow in his wake. He received a four-match ban for stamping on Genk's Jeroen Simaeys in April 2012 and was then sent home from Belgium's under-21 squad a year later after he and a teammate had broken protocol by inviting girls up to their room.
It was in his final season that he really took off. He formed an excellent partnership with young Nigerian forward Imoh Ezekiel, and scored 21 goals in 38 appearances for a side who finished top of the regular season table only to lose out to Anderlecht in the championship playoffs. His goals-per-90-minutes rate steadily increased during his time in Liege, from 0.44 in 2011-12, to 0.49 in 2012-13 and up again to 0.62 last season.
It was enough to convince Marseille to pay a six million euro fee in order to bring him to Ligue 1 last summer. The excellent form of Andre-Pierre Gignac -- with whom he enjoys a mutual appreciation for hip-hop -- limited his opportunities in the early part of the campaign, but he received his first start at home to Lille in December and has been preferred to Gignac in each of the club's last two matches.
Batshuayi has netted six goals to date, at a per-90-minutes rate of 0.74. Per ESPN Stats and Info, his expected goal rate (the number of goals he would be expected to score given the positions from which his shots were taken) stands at 0.67, which suggests this is not an unsustainable hot streak. Of all the players who have taken part in at least 60 percent of their team's matches, his scoring rate is only bettered by that of Lyon's Alexandre Lacazette.
The 21-year-old recently communicated his decision to represent Belgium at international level, stating that while his Congolese heritage was important to him, he was born in Belgium and feels he owes a debt to the country where he was raised. The likes of Arsenal, Borussia Dortmund and Everton were all linked to him prior to his move to Marseille and he is certainly a player whose progression will be keenly watched.
Style:
Batshuayi is a tricky, two-footed forward, whose powerful acceleration, quick feet, superb balance on the turn and excellent finishing skills make him a real threat to opposition defences. While he is capable of playing as a lone striker, his performance in the first half of Marseille's win at home to Lille in December, in which he regularly dropped off the front to receive the ball, turn and run at the visiting defence, did suggest that a wide forward or second striker role would be his most natural long-term position.
Major strengths:
- Swift acceleration and good balance
- Quick feet
- Powerful yet precise finisher
Major weaknesses:
- Timing of his off-ball runs
- Occasionally loose first touch
Assessment breakdown:
Tackling: He had a bit of reputation for ill-timed tackles during his time at Standard Liege but has only been booked once since moving to France. His tackling success rate does, however, leave much to be desired. He has completed just two successful tackles so far this season, while giving up 23 fouls.
Marking: The fact that 15 of the 23 fouls he has committed were located in the middle and defensive third (as per ESPN Stats and Info) shows that he does put effort into tracking back and helping out defensively. He has made a few interceptions in and around the centre circle.
Heading: Not really a strong point. He has averaged just one headed effort on goal for every 180 minutes of football he has played so far this season and has also won just one of his 11 aerial duels. Far more comfortable receiving the ball into feet.
Close control: His first touch is sometimes a little loose, but once he has the ball under his control he displays impressively quick feet in manipulating it away from challenges. Got the Stade Velodrome crowd on their feet with a roulette and a flicked pass between defenders during the win over Lille in December. Keeps good control of the ball at pace, while his excellent balance on the turn makes him a real handful.
Passing: He generally links well, with quick one-touch layoffs with his back to goal. It is, however, usually his dribbling, rather than his passing, that provides incision. He showed at Standard Liege that is capable of producing defence-splitting passes, but he is yet to demonstrate that in Marseille.
Positioning: Finds good pockets of space when he drops off the front. Does, however, need to work on the timing of his off-ball movements, as was made apparent against Toulouse. He was caught well offside on two or three occasions after making premature runs in behind and was a little fortunate that the ball didn't come directly his way in the build up to his second goal. He has the fourth highest number of offsides per 90 minutes (1.4) in Ligue 1.
Crossing: Generally looks to drive infield when he receives the ball out wide. Has attempted just four crosses so far this season, with a 25 percent success rate. The ability to strike the ball powerfully and accurately which he displays when shooting would suggest that he is, however, capable of providing good deliveries into the box from wide areas.
Finishing: Strikes the ball very cleanly off of either foot and always tries to hit the corners of the net. His superbly taken opener against Toulouse on Friday showed him at his best in this regard. Rarely panics in front of goal. He has got 42.9 percent of his shots on target so far this season.
What the experts say:
Former Standard Liege coach Guy Luzon, in late 2013, on Batshuayi and Ezekiel: "Both are fast and technically gifted, and they can only get better and better. They are just fulfilling about 40 percent of their capabilities now. People say that Michy struggles to keep focus during games, but I don't think so. He improves with every week."
"@ViktoriousFoot: @BelgoFoot how do you rate Batshuayi?" Looks a very good prospect. Looks better than Benteke when he left Belgium.
- John Chapman (@BelgoFoot) March 19, 2014
You can sometimes tell a future top-class player very early on. Batshuayi is going to be one heck of a striker. Amazing presence & composure
- Jerome Pugmire (@jeromepugmire) February 22, 2015
Trivia:
Batshuayi's younger brother, Aaron Leya Iseka, is also a footballer and currently plays for Anderlecht. The 17-year-old recently scored the winning goal in his club's 1-0 win over Barcelona in the last 16 of the UEFA Youth League.
Conclusion:
Batshuayi is clearly a talented player and at 21 years old still has plenty of time to improve the weaker aspects of his game. His development will benefit from playing in a difficult league -- "more physical," "tighter" and "technically better" than the Jupiler League, as he himself puts it -- under a highly demanding coach who has had a strong positive impact on the careers of a number of young players.
He does, though, need to push himself to make the most of his physical and technical attributes. His former Standard Liege teammate Igor De Camacho has described him as "the best striker when he wants to be, which is not all the time," while in April of last year, Belgium coach Marc Wilmots said that he felt Batshuayi was not enough of a team player. While the indiscipline of his youth appears to have passed, now is the time to really knuckle down.
Batshuayi admitted prior to his move to Marseille that he is a big fan of Arsenal, not least for the trust they show in young players. He is an ambitious character and will view the Premier League as the next natural step up from Ligue 1. But first he must establish himself in France, with a strong performance against Lyon this coming weekend his first priority.