QPR Recruitment Focus: Defensive Midfielder
Since the arrival of Isaac Hayden in January, QPR have been able to operate at an significantly higher level defensively and been able to keep some of the best teams in the league at bay. Hayden has been exceptional but with the rumoured wages of £22,000 per week (via capology.com) are true — perhaps it’s unlikely that we’ll be able to afford his return to Loftus Road next season. However, this is where we get to have fun in speculating who we will be able to find that can replace his defensive efforts and passing output.
Having investigated 14 different players across different leagues, here’s my top 5 candidates that fit the age profile of what QPR are looking for (20–26) and would likely be within QPR’s budget. With a lot of different skillsets and player profiles in this article, I’ve utilised data comparisons to better demonstrate how good these recommended players are relative to the current crop of defensive minded midfielders at QPR. A handful of interesting options didn’t make the cut but will be mentioned at the end. If you have any further suggestions that you think would be a great fit, please comment below!
Loreintz Rosier — Fortuna Sittard
The 25 year old midfielder has an impressive burst of pace, coupled with excellent anticipation ability, enabling him to steal and intercept passes often — using his long legs to nip in front of opposition players and turn the ball over. An excellent athlete, Rosier shows strong tactical awareness and is often seen directing traffic and entering spaces to create good angles to find his teammates. Despite being 6 feet 2, he shows good energy, covering a lot of ground and utilising both feet to dribble or pass his way out of danger impressively.
Rosier’s statistical season has been magnificent, sitting in the top 10% of central midfielders in the Eredivisie for Aerial Duel Win % (68.9%), Duels Win % (61.1%) and Interceptions (37 total). Despite only featuring in 27 matches with 15 starts, the Frenchman has been a monster defensively — often playing as a single holding midfielder behind 2 other central midfielders. Rosier also has a 77.8% dribble success rate, placing him in the top 15% of CMs in the Eredivisie — highlighting his impressive ball control and ball carrying skills to get himself and his team out of pressure.
Rosier has struggled for gametime since picking up a knock back in mid February and perhaps slipping down the pecking order at Fortuna Sittard will mean he’s open to a move this summer. He could be available fairly cheap due to this, alongside his contract expiring in 2025 — meaning he suits QPR’s budget and could be a cheap addition. Would provide more athleticism that’s currently lacking in QPR’s midfield and has great size that would be ideal to dealing with the physicality of the Championship too.
Hector Kyprianou — Peterborough United
Kyprianou is tall & athletic, using his agility and strength extremely well to receive from defenders and quickly turn it into an attack for Peterborough. He’s strong in the air and uses his positional intelligence, anticipation and reactions to position himself defensively to keep Peterborough’s shape strong. He has intelligent movement to step up or out into pockests of space and he’s an active creator from deep with a quality first touch and excellent range of passing to unlock defences & play through the lines. Kyprianou has all the tools of an exceptional holding midfielder and his physical attributes enable him to be strong in the contact as well as being a classy operator.
Contributing 8 goals and 1 assist this season is evidence of Kyprianou’s ability to crash the box late on and be an asset aerially too. He’s an outlier statistically when compared to other defensive midfielders in League One, placing in the top 5% for xG (8.89), Goals (8), Successful Pass (1,941), Long Ball Accuracy (63.7%), Touches in opponent’s box (85), Duels Won (260) and Aerial Duels Won (127). Incredible season from the youngster who will no doubt be going to the very top level in the next couple of seasons.
The Cypriot international will be in high demand, with many clubs in the Premier League and Championship monitoring Peterborough and their talented youngsters. He also has a contract until 2027 having recently joined from Leyton Orient last summer — meaning he’d be a relatively expensive acquisition. However, QPR could really use a dominant holding midfielder who can play forward as well as defend astutely and Kyprianou is that seriously talented player.
Malthe Højholt — Aalborg
The young Danish midfielder is often found dropping in to receive the ball from his centre-backs or full-backs before hitting some lovely long passes with great technique to switch the play or get the forwards in-behind. Højholt makes the occasional forward run to target space left by the opposition, creating chances from those pockets of space as well as from deep. He has a great ability to read the game and anticipate passes, timing his engagement in duels really well. A decent player who could still improve in a few areas, Højholt may be an optimistic shout to fill Hayden’s boots straight away but could be on Martí’s radar due to the Aalborg connection.
Højholt is an excellent distributor of the ball, in the top 1% of CMs in the Danish 2nd Division with 1,367 in total & in the top 8% for passing accuracy with 87.5% too. Also, his work off the ball is evident and the statistics support this by highlighting how strong he is at recovering possession. He has 7.8 recoveries per 90 and he wins possession in the final third 0.83 times per 90 minutes — 2 strong statistics that emphasise his combative nature and well-rounded game.
The 23 year-old’s current contract expires in December 2024 and if he isn’t snapped up by a bigger Scandinavian or European club, could be a relatively cheap and sensible addition for QPR. The talent and potential is certianly there but it’s likely he’d come in and be drip fed minutes early on and allow him a few months to adjust to life in a new country and a more fast-paced and physical league.
Pelle Mattsson — Silkeborg
Mattsson has had an impressive year, cementing himself as a quality progressive passer who does all the basics very well. He uses his body well to protect the ball and wrestle to win possession for his team. The 22 year-old is good at making forward runs & bursting into space with and without the ball— showcasing good vision and movement in the opponent’s half. Furthermore, he’s a strong ball carrier but likes to facilitate attacks by spraying passes to teammates’ that are making forward runs too.
Mattsson is a well balanced player who can use his range of passing to exploit gaps and his 89.3% passing accuracy (top 5% of CMs in the Danish Superliga) accentuates this. With 60% dribble success rate and 2.02 fouls won per 90 minutes, perhaps his skillset is more suited to a box-to-box role rather than being a lone defensive midfielder in Hayden’s place.
Mattsson has a contract running until 2026 so a fee would be needed to secure his services, but I feel that it would be justified for a young, talented defensive midfielder who looks ready to compete at Championship level. Very well-rounded player who could play in a double-pivot or alone as a deeper playmaker, he’s a great player that has capacity to improve and grow with the likes of Field & Colback mentoring him alongside the coaching staff at QPR. Would be a clever acquisition if he isn’t snapped up by top clubs in the Netherlands, Belgium etc.
Miguel Atienza — Burgos
Atienza has strong defensive awareness and positioning, knowing when to close down attackers to get to the ball and block shots/crosses. At 6'1" tall, he has decent physical attributes for a defensive minded midfielder and shows aggression in the tackle too. The 24-year-old has impressive athletic ability to change direction and get himself into an optimal position to block the ball or make challenges. He plays simple passes and takes what is given in terms of passing range, showing capability to play with both feet in the process.
Atienza isn’t a stand out passer and his statistics support that but he shines in his defensive contributions and efforts. He places in the top 15% of CMs in La Liga 2 for % of duels won (56.4%), aerial duels won per 90 (2.66), % of aerial duels won (61.5%) and interceptions per 90 (1.67). He doesn't spend much time on the ball but is amazing at breaking up play and winning possession back, which would be crucial if we are trying to replace Hayden.
His current contract expires this June and he could be a solid option to acquire on a free transfer, if he fails to re-sign with mid-table Burgos. He’s of a decent age and size profile to fill in at defensive midfield and could add some more steel and grit to our midfield unit — something that Cifuentes may want in his defence-first approach. Atienza would be relatively cheap and could provide good competition for places with Field, if Hayden fails to return to W12.
Statistical Comparisons
Before we begin, I have to caveat that I was unable to find free, available data for all these players but will do my best to create comparisons and highlight relative strengths and weaknesses with what I could find. Also, context is crucial and some of these players have spent this season in leagues that are of a lower standard than the Championship so take some of the comparisons and data with a pinch of salt.
To begin with, the basic passing statistics are worth analysing — with Hayden and Field both passing on fewer occasions than some of the other recommended signings. I think this highlights how good Hayden is though — with a lot of successful passes despite only playing 35 passes per game in his holding role. Mattsson, Højholt & Kyprianou are passing often and very accurately, as they’ve all got the ability to dictate a game from deep which is inferred by some of their passing numbers. Rosier isn’t a fantastic passer with just under 76% passing accuracy, hurting his stock when compared to the others.
I was unable to find progressive passing data for Kyprianou, Mattsson and Højholt but Kyprianou leads all of the players here for key passes per 90 with 0.8. When watching Kyprianou play he’s often receiving on his back foot and breaking into space on the turn before playing forward passes so I’d imagine his progressive passing statistics are strong too. Rosier plays a lot of progressive passes (4.38 per 90), perhaps explaining his lower passing accuracy % because he’s playing riskier forward passes to break lines and feed wide players in. Hayden and Field are decent in both facets of key and progressive passing, although it feels like there’s still a lack of a deep-lying playmaker at QPR — however, I don’t see this role as a priority for a Cifuentes’ team and his style of play.
When we look at the statistics that matter the most for a defensive midfielder, Isaac Hayden looks a cut above. 76% win rate for aerial duels is insane and places him extremely high compared to other Championship midfielders. When analysing the recommended signings, Rosier stands out with his 68.9% aerial duel win rate and 61.1% of all duels won — he’s dominant and eats up challenges as he plays in a similar role to Hayden as the lone defensive midfielder to screen the back 4. Mattsson is significantly weaker in duels relative to the others, but this is caveated by his incredibly strong passing ability — giving us the impression that he’s more of a deep lying playmaker than a destroyer. Atienza & Kyprianou are similar to Sam Field statistically and they both have a similar build to him as well — could be 2 players to monitor if Sam Field were to be sold on in the next 12 months.
Furthermore, the amount of duels won per 90 minutes by Rosier is extremely impressive with 7.39 per 90 minutes! He’s also averaging 2.32 interceptions per 90 minutes which highlights his ability to read the game and be mobile enough to cut off passing lanes all over the pitch. Field and Hayden do well in both metrics but Atienza has similar statistics to both of them, which is testament to his excellent positioning and defensive efforts. Kyprianou lacks a high amount of tackles per 90 with just 1 and 0.57 interceptions per 90 too, although I think this showcases how dominant Peterborough are because he rarely has to make challenges and they’re able to force teams into mistakes higher up the pitch or in other areas. Mattsson and Højholt perform fairly well in all 3 metrics but perhaps underwhelm relative to the incumbent defensive midfielders at QPR.
Summary and Conclusions
I’ve got my fingers crossed that Hayden returns next year and rumours suggest that he’s keen to return too but having a contingency plan is crucial. I feel that a couple of the suggested players would go some way to replicating the output of Isaac Hayden out of possession; having the physical ability to win duels and dominate in the middle of the park as well as the legs to cover ground in transitions. Hayden’s quality on the ball could be extremely hard to replicate but I feel that the recommended signings could fill his shoes amicably and be supported by Field & Colback in keeping QPR defensively compact.
With defensive quality being a major factor for Cifuentes’ style, a DM could be high on his priority list and even if Hayden returns, he doesn’t have a great history of remaining injury free.
There were lots of other players that I scouted but ultimately didn’t make this shortlist and these were:
- Willity Younoussa — Rodez AF
- Connor Barron — Aberdeen
- Jordan Brown — Leyton Orient
- Tesfadelt Tekie — Hammarby
- Daniel Svensson — Nordsjaelland
- Mees Hoedemakers — NEC Nijmegen
- Ousmane Diakite — TSV Hartberg
- Nohan Kenneh — Shrewsbury Town (loaned from Hibernian)
- Julian Baas — Excelsior
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading and don’t forget to comment — I’d love to hear your suggestions or your feedback!
Cheers, Greg
