Adam Hložek - Top 5 in 5
Background & Introduction
The first instalment of my ‘Top 5 in 5’ series covers an archetypical Football Manager wonderkid. Adam Hložek broke onto the scene at an obscenely young age scoring on his debut for Sparta Praha in the MOL Cup aged just 15 year. Just 8 months later he became the youngest player to represent the club in the Czech top tier & Hložek continued to break records & defy logic. By netting against reigning champions Viktoria Plzen he become the youngest ever goalscorer in the Czech Primera Liga at 16 years, 7 months & 12 days old. After 2,227 minutes of first team exposure already, the teen sensational is seen as one of the brightest prospects in European football.
Hložek starred as a centre-forward throughout his youth career for club & country. Given his tall frame & athletic build that was no surprise. He was at ease as a lone striker. Physically strong, technically brilliant & above average pace for a player of his size. The vast majority of his appearances in senior football however have come on the flanks, having played on the left (22) or right wing (19) most often in his 49 games so far.
Positional Play
The Czech under-21 international was not forced out wide for any lack of robustness, rather circumstances & necessity created an opportunity. Following a sub-standard start to the 2018/19 season, then Sparta manager Zdenek Scasny changed formation from 4–4–2 to a 4–2–3–1. A six game winning run followed along with a permanent change to his sides shape. With just one starting spot for top scorer Benjamin Tetteh, Czech international Vaclav Kadlec & youth prospects Matej Pullkrab & Vaclav Drchal to vie for, it was much more realistic for Hložak to break through on the wing.
His skill set lends to the role of a wide forward effortlessly. Frequent creative passing & a direct dribbling technique has allowed him to flourish. This is highlighted by his metrics this season, ranking well above average in a number of key areas when compared to other wide players in the Czech Fortuna Liga. Adam’s 2.97 touches in the box per 90 places him in the 72nd percentile whilst only 10 widemen have attempt more than the 5.75 dribbles per game he has. Adam continues to excel with 1.32 deep completed passes per 90, placing him in the 81st percentile amongst his contemporaries & that is to name just a few of his standout numbers.
By the summer of 2019 the Czech giants had lost Romanian trio Alexandru Chipciu (RW), Bogdan Vatajelu (LW) & Nicolai Stanciu (RW) from their squad, allowing Hložek to cement his place as a starter under new manager Vaclav Jilek.
Hložek prefers to work his way towards the byline to cross the ball. Whether dribbling past defenders, linking up with teammates or looking to play off the shoulder & get in behind, there is a clear preference to arrive at a more advantageous crossing position. Punting the ball into the box without meaning or aim are not typical aspects of his game, as he concentrates more on squaring the ball to attacker running from deep or flashing the ball into the no-mans land between the keeper & defenders (as seen below). A higher than average proportion of his crosses (33.64%) have been into the six yard box, whilst propensity of his is to cut inside & whip a shot/cross hybrid towards the far post, especially when playing off the left.
Attacking Prowess
Sparta’s fall from grace over recent years has meant Hložek’s rise has been a timely one. The teenage sensation appears to have taken on a talismanic role, with much of his sides attacking output going through him. In the 2019/20 season so far Hložek’s goals & assists have been responsible for 15.4% of Sparta’s total tally, whilst his expected goals (xG) & expected assists (xA) account for 16.7%. This is only bettered by Gabonese international Guélor Kanga within the squad, Sparta’s designated set-piece taker. Kanga has taken 62 free-kicks & 69 corners & removing their value would be interesting, but I don’t have access to data to allow me to do this. What I have done in the treemap below is remove Kanga’s 5 penalty goals (assuming penalties have an xG value of 0.76), which then sees Hložek reign supreme in expected contributions for the ‘The Irons.’
Hložek has managed an output of 2.34 shots per 90 throughout his senior career, which is perfectly serviceable as a wide forward. He often gets into threatening areas due to instinct or dribbling ability but can finds space hard to come by - hence the high level of blocked attempts on the shotmap below. He is comfortable shooting with both feet, having attempted 20 shots with his less favoured left foot whilst scoring 2 goals. He has managed 48 shots with his right foot & scored 3 goals.
The majority of his low xG shots come in a cluster outside of the left hand side of the penalty area & this is the result of a signature move. When facing a low-block, Hložek has developed a tendency to run at the opposition by cutting inside. This is usually done from the left wing moving onto his more favoured right foot, but he has also attempted this from the other flank less frequently. By drawing various opposition defenders towards him with an array of tricks & power, Hložak has the strength & dribbling ability to retain possession under pressure. Perhaps too often he then unleashes a shot from the half-space, which is not exactly the most economical use of the opening he’s created - despite causing some goalkeepers problems. Nevertheless on occasion, it has also lead to him producing incisive through balls & providing clear-cut opportunities. Should he improve his decision making to spot these passes more often, this could become a lethal trait.
Hložek has underperformed in front of goal this season, netting 4 from an xG of 7.81. When this figure is compared to other wonderkid wide players, it becomes clear that Hložek’s production in front of goal is extremely promising. Hložek is averaging a higher xG per 90 (0.32) than Ebereche Eze(0.27), Calvin Stengs (0.21), Bryan Mbuemo (0.28) & Cody Gakpo (0.28) who have all managed to score 10 or more goals this season.
Strength & Defensive Capabilities
His height has also been used to great affect by Sparta. At 6'1/186cm, Adam is an unusually tall ‘winger’ & his aerial prowess stands out. He has a remarkable 2.14 successful aerial duels per 90. This ranks him 3rd amongst the aforementioned young wide players (beaten by Oliver Burke & Marcus Thuram who are both taller than him) & has the highest success rate, winning 40.2% of the aerial duels he has contested in total. Often from goal kicks or distributional play, Hložek will be paired against a small full back. As the ball is launched into their vicinity this allows Adam to flick the ball on & gain territory for Sparta during their build-up.
It could be argued he doesn’t do enough aerially in front of goal. He has only scored one header for Sparta’s senior team out of two total attempts, yet was somewhat prolific for various Czech youth international teams. This is in part due to Hložek no longer being in the position to head the ball as often & also due to the fact that defenders often match up to him now physically, much more so than in youth team games. Rather than a weakness, this is a clear potential waiting to be unlocked in the wonderkids game, which could lead to adding more goals at the far post for him.
Hložek doesn’t shirk his defensive responsibilities either. Sparta Praha’s high average possession (56.2% in 2019/20) does not give the 17-year-old many opportunities to show this, hence his relatively low 4.12 defensive duels per game. Despite this he boasts an outstanding 63.7% win rate in those duels. It’s a measured & controlled approach that is not typical of a young attacker. This has lead to him getting booked just once in his 47 league game career. He also works well in a defensive unit & tends to recognise when he needs to track back. He shows an awareness of when to cut off passing lanes & where to position himself, highlighted by him making 4.09 interceptions per opposition 30 & blocking 0.13 shots per 90 in the league this season.
Conclusion
Various reports have suggested Hložek has already had trials at various European giants that have not yet materialised into permanent moves. Despite this it seems inevitable that Hložek won’t end up plying his trade in one of the top 5 European leagues soon, certainly by the end of 2022 summer transfer window. He has all the potential to follow in the footsteps of fellow Sparta academy graduates Thomáš Rosický, Patrik Berger, & Patrik Schick & that is why he features in my ‘Top 5 in 5' series.