Time and again the French League throws up outstanding names that are ready to take on the best in the world, from Zinedine Zidane to Eden Hazard to the likes of Lacazette last season. If there is one league competing with the French set-up for having one of the most exciting pools of youngsters, it has to be the Belgian League. One such name is the up and coming 22 year old Marseille striker Michy Batshuayi.
Background
Batshuayi was born in Brussels on 2nd October, 1993. He has been a bit of a journeyman since his youth days, initially joining RFC Evera in 2003 before moving to RUSA Shaarbeek and thereafter, FC Brussels in 2005. A move to RSC Anderlecht in 2006 was followed by another move back to FC Brussels. His first big move came when he joined Belgian giants Standard Liege in 2008, where he would eventually become a part of their first team set up.
He featured on 97 occasions during his time at Stade Maurice Dufrasne scoring 39 goals in due course with 2013-14 being his most prolific (21 goals in 34 games meant he finished the season as the league’s top scorer).
On 8th August 2014, it was made official that Marseille had acquired the services of the Belgian for an undisclosed fee, signing a contract that would keep him at the French club until the end of the 2019 season. However, the Belgian is attracting immense interest from clubs across Europe already and should he continue the fine goal scoring form he has been in, his manager Michel will find it hard to hold on to the coveted striker.
Strengths
Michy is a strong, dynamic number 9 who knows where the back of the goal is. His calmness in front of goal often defies his young age. He has shown scorching pace, tenacity in the box, a fine set of feet and can dribble past most opponents with ease making him a nuisance for the opposition. Watching him chase and harry defenders is reminiscent of a certain maverick Uruguayan who dons the Barcelona colours. While it remains to be seen if Batshuayi can match Luiz Suarez’s abilities, he is definitely on the right path.
At 5”11, he is definitely not amongst the most lanky strikers in the league, yet he possesses a great leap making him a threat in the air as well as on the ground. Many people feel that he has merely been lucky, claiming that Batshuayi only profits from being in the right place at the right time to knock the ball home from close range. These claims are ill-founded as it’s his abilities in reading the game intelligently complemented by his tenacity in the box which have yielded such fine results.
The Belgian has scored 14 goals in 20 outings this season, resulting in a fine 0.7 goals per game. He has demonstrated his fair share of creativity, creating 25 chances in all competitions. With 5 assists in the Ligue 1, Michy has directly or indirectly contributed to more than half of his side’s goals (Marseille have scored a total of 28 goals in the league).
He possesses a lethal set of feet, demonstrated by the fact that out of the 14 goals he has scored so far this season, 5 have come from his left foot and 6 from his right foot, displaying an ambidexterity that’s rarely seen in strikers.
Weaknesses
While he has great attacking attributes, there are certain obvious flaws which cannot be ignored. His passing accuracy needs working upon; he tends to be too selfish at times and needs to add defensive elements to help his side.
One of the biggest attributes that determine the difference between a good player and a great player is his ability to make the right decisions at the right time. At the moment, Michy tends to be too ambitious on occasions. Probably, as he ages and gains a decent amount of top flight football, he will mature and showcase better decision making skills on the pitch.
Future
The Belgian international, who was also eligible to represent DR Congo through his parents, put speculation to an end with a statement in March 2015 making clear his intentions to represent Belgium. He has been a part of the Belgian set up since 2012, featuring on 13 occasions for the U-21s, in the process finding the back of the net 7 times. He made a memorable senior debut, scoring just 3 minutes after coming on in the 77th minute against Cyprus.
After initially being linked with Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham, Michy is now being linked with Juventus, who scouted him during Marseille’s game against Bordeaux. While manager Michel might not be keen to part ways with one of the most talented youngsters in world football, it is widely believed that a bid in the range of £25-30 Million will more than suffice to land the player.
