Since City signed talented Poland Under-21 international Przemyslaw Placheta, he’s been a hot topic of conversation; even more so following his much-publicised sprint on Saturday afternoon.
After him scoring in the pre-season friendlies and us watching those games on YouTube live (cheers Dresden and Darmstadt) the interest in him has peaked among City fans.
So, let’s take a look at what he can bring to the team this coming season and what he has done prior to arriving at Carrow Road.
He’s predominantly left-footed and can play anywhere across the attacking three behind a striker, and can also fill in as a left wing-back if needed.
He’s 22-years-old, is 5ft 8in in height, and was born on the 23rd March 1998 in Lowicz – a town in central Poland which has more than 28,000 residents.
Below is a brief insight into where he started his career and his journey to being a Norwich City player:
2013–2015 – Polonia Warszawa
2015–2017 – RB Leipzig Youth and RB Leipzig II
2017–2018 – SG Sonnenhof Grobaspach
2018–2018 – Pogon Siedlce
2018–2019 – Podbeskidzie Bielsko-Biala
2019–2020 – Slask Warsaw
His stats for last season were 38 games played, 90% of all minutes played, nine goals, three assists, three yellow cards and one red card.
The first thing that always comes to mind about Placheta is his pace – he has it in abundance. I’d love to see a foot race between him and Onel Hernandez!
Another key attribute he has is his footballing intelligence. He’s not one to make a pass and then stand to admire it, and he passes and moves, filling up little pockets of space in between the lines of the opposition and linking the play.
He loves running at opposition players and trying tricks to beat his man. I have no doubt he will have fans on the edge of their seats when we can return to watching games.
If City are to keep Emi Buendia this season or Todd Cantwell, having Placheta and Hernandez either side of them would create problems for the opposition full-backs.
The ability, especially away from home, to be able to counter with not one but two fast wingers who can carry the ball cannot be understated. It gives us the ability to turn defence into attack in an instant. Too many times in the last couple of seasons we have been accused of not having a Plan B, but this is likely going to be it.
If we can get the defending sorted and establish a more solid base to build from, being able to counter with this amount of pace with quality delivery could be the difference between getting nothing or everything when on the road.
Last season, and particularly since the restart, we had serious problems in beating the first man at set-pieces, something the opposition has had no trouble in doing and scoring from.
Placheta is a man who takes all set-pieces and regularly beats the first man while putting the ball in areas where he expects a teammate to be attacking. It’s something that’s been missing for Pukki for a while now but also something young Adam Idah will thrive on. We have seen how alive he is inside the box, so this gives us an opportunity to deliver some more quality.
Another key aspect to his game is work rate, something we know Daniel Farke demands. You will often see when he cuts inside that he will track back and not only help out his teammate but try to nick the ball back. I remember last season this was a strong suit for Buendia, how he would track back and steal the ball while supporting Max Aarons.
Taking shots on goal or getting them on target proved problematic in the PL, but is something Placheta has in his locker. If he’s anywhere around the box with a clear sight on goal he’ll have a pop at it, more times than not testing the keeper’s handling.
While he has talent, he’s rough around the edges, which is why we were able to get him at the price being quoted, around 2million Euros.
When he gets a sight of goal, he does suffer from tunnel vision, and if he gets any sight of the goal just outside the box he will hit it; something that has benefits and weaknesses. But this all comes down to decision-making and that is something that will be worked on at Colney.
He has stated one of the players he watches a lot and tries to emulate is Raheem Sterling, and if he can have just half the impact Sterling has on Manchester City then we could be in for some great performances this season.
An interesting read Stuat and yes, his pace to be in the box for any cross or rebound on Saturday was incredible and as you say, sonetning that will test opposing full backs and a great addition to our team.
SW has certainly given DF quite a few ‘wweapons’ to add to his arsenal and it will be fascinating to see if DF has a referred starting 11, or varies it depending on who our opponents are and try to exploit any weaknesses they may have.
Just under 3 weeks until the transfer window closes for the PL squads and I see that several writers are beginning to feel that there won’t be a mass exodus of our young talent. I’m sure that ALL NCFC fans are hoping that that will be the case and that they will stay and benefit from another year of DF and his staff’s coaching before deciding whether or not toleave NR1/Colney.
I like the look of Placheta. With his speed he can bring crowds (if we have them again) to their feet. I think Farke will need to rotate his squad this season given the frequency of games. So it will be interesting how often Placheta starts. He may well be an impact substitute.
OTBC
Hi Stuart
An excellent read and summary of out polish lad.
All what you say it true the telling point will be can he adapt to the championship and to playing 2 games aweek.
The championship is not the most skilled league but it is the toughest in the world to get out of.
Only time will really tell but his opening games have so far impressed.
He reminds me of a guy from 100 years ago fleeing a “shotgun wedding”.
From what little I’ve seen of him I like him. Very much.
I think there’ll be more than a few Championship defenders who remember his name this season, mainly because his name on the back of his shirt is all they’ll see of him as he leaves them trailing in his wake.
He desperately needs a nick-name, ‘cos none of us are going to be able to pronounce his first name.
Try Shemy
We should at least try, I guess some of our names are difficult for some our Polish friends
Flash?