How Kevin and Samuel Chukwueze will elevate Fulham's attack

Here's a closer look at our two (pending) new recruits.

Tony Khan has risen! (Hopefully.)

Marco’s prayers look like they might finally be answered with not one but two wingers. Fabrizio Romano reported on Monday that Fulham are in advanced talks to sign Kevin from Shakhtar Donetsk for a fee worth over €40m alongside AC Milan winger Samuel Chukwueze for a package worth €25m.

After losing both Willian and Reiss Nelson in the summer, signing wide options were crucial while also ensuring they raise Fulham’s ceiling in the process. So, how do both of these signings fit that mould?

Another Samba star?

Towards the latter stages of last season things went a bit flat. Too predictable in the final third? Tired legs from a thin squad? A lack of dynamism when it really mattered? All these were valid concerns when watching Marco Silva’s side from March onwards, and while I won’t pretend to have watched much of Shakhtar, from a statistical point of view Kevin is certainly one to get excited about.

Compared to other wingers in the top five leagues over the last year (this should be taken with a slight pinch of salt given the quality of the Ukrainian League) Kevin has shone. Some 4.9 progressive carries per 90, 5.10 successful take-ons and 0.39 non-penalty goals put him in the top 1% across Europe. Equally, 2.55 touches in the attacking penalty area (top 10%) and 3.92 progressive passes received (top 12%) showcases just how lively the left-winger has been on his way to winning the player of the season award for Shakhtar.

Don’t get me wrong, there are still areas that need improvement (as expected for a 22 year old). Scoring low on passes attempted (24.12 compared to Alex Iwobi’s 46.92), and a pass completion of 74.8% puts him in the bottom 8%, and just 1.76 progressive passes (compared to Alex Iwobi’s 6.58) indicates a desire to be the main focal point sometimes to his own detriment.

These are all things that can easily be ironed out. We’ve seen it time and time again under Marco Silva - his ability to turn rocks into diamonds and an explosive winger is just the profile that Fulham need.

He comes with high praise from Shakhtar fans, who praise his defensive workrate (2.35 tackles per 90 compared to Iwobi’s 1.22) and a desire to improve that mean “Fulham will struggle to scare off from European giants in a few years time”.

Like I said, I haven’t sat down and watched Kevin before but Fulham are hardly the club to splash this amount of money willy-nilly. He’s clearly a talent and his desire to improve alongside Silva’s ambition could be a match made in heaven. Get it done.

“Chuking the bank” at Chukwueze

On the right-hand side, Samu Chukwueze appears to be our man. A player that Fulham were close to signing on deadline day in January before it fell through and we decided to bell Willian again! Chukwueze has European pedigree, playing for Villarreal and now AC Milan. The Nigerian looks to be more of a “finished article” compared to his Brazilian counterpart, averaging a goal contribution in 29.2% of games across his career which is impressive given just how long he’s been playing in the top leagues. The 26-year-old looks like a much more rounded and steady player whose clearly coming into the peak of his powers.

The difference statistically between Harry Wilson and Samuel Chukwueze isn’t an awful lot, so while I don’t think it’s as much of a drastic improvement as on our left-hand-side, I do think that Chukwueze is a more than valuable asset to the Fulham team. Don’t get me wrong, losing another Nigerian during the season for AFCON will be a concern. But signing a lively winger who wants to drive with the ball and create something out of nothing is what we’ve been craving for a while on SW6 and I think that for the price tag, it’s a good signing.

Needle movers?

Marco Silva has said in the past that we cannot stand still and while we all wish these signings would have come quicker, you can’t deny that signing two players of Kevin and Chukwueze’s ability will elevate the ceiling of this Fulham side. Not only are we acquiring two dynamic wingers with a keen eye for goal, but we are also improving the overall depth of our squad.

Silva will want to compete at the highest level possible on all three fronts this season and bringing in two top draw wingers will only make that job a little bit easier. What it means in terms of minutes for the likes of Adama Traore remains to be seen, but these are the type of moves Fulham had to make this summer and while it’s taken longer than anyone would’ve liked, it appears we’re finally getting some deals over the line.