Emmanuel Dennis may have been recalled by the Super Eagles after a year’s absence, but it is certainly not going well for the forward at Belgian champions Club Brugge.
Club Brugge have posted some indifferent results in the league lately, but even then their Nigerian star has mostly not featured.
Against both OH Leuven and KV Mechelen, the 22-year-old Dennis remained on the bench for the entire match.
At Standard Liège, he did not leave the dressing room after the break with a 1-0 lead.
In the Jupiler Pro League, coach Philippe Clement did not play the versatile attacker for the past 225 minutes, who can play both on the flank as well as a top striker.
The result: three goals versus five goals against, resulting in seven lost points.
At the start of this season, Dennis did not see any minutes in the cup final against Antwerp, just as he did on match day three in the defeat against Beerschot.
No fewer than ten of the 13 points that Club Brugge already dropped in this year, came without Dennis. He only went down on the opening matchday against Charleroi.
THE MISSING OF DENNIS
At the time, transfer rumours were still swarming around him, a possible explanation for Clement’s decision to leave him out every now and then.
Yet at that time it was already sounded regularly that Dennis was struggling with some kind of ailment, often with an ankle injury after he was kicked in training.
Now his frequent absences may not coincidentally coincide with the start of the Champions League campaign, in which he was always at the kick-off and was always replaced less than ten minutes before the final whistle.
The Mister Europe belonged to Liège, Leuven and Mechelen from Jan Breydel, moreover, simply to the competition core. There is therefore absolutely no question of an injury, or at least not to the extent that he cannot play.
It wouldn’t be surprising if something was going on under the radar. Although Clement, who is a proponent of the scientific approach, can also simply get the signal from his medical staff that Dennis’s workload must be managed to avoid any problems.
The forward, who therefore, despite his diligent work and professional attitude, is wrongly given a certain label here and there, nevertheless indicates that he prefers to play every time. Unfortunately, that turns out not to be for him.
We would almost forget, but the hero of Bernabéu is now already working on his fourth season with Club Brugge.
Vincent Mannaert picked him up in the summer of 2017 at the age of barely 18, for just under one and a half million, from Ukraine.
LACK OF REGULAR SIZE
Dennis got off to a blazing start, with four goals in his first three league matches. He could not sustain this tempo, but with seven goals and five assists in 30 matches, the newcomer eventually played a significant role in winning the championship.
In retrospect, it was perhaps his best campaign for Bruges so far, at least in terms of efficiency for that matter. After all, coach Ivan Leko often used him as a substitute.
The following year, Dennis had already accumulated more minutes, in the past year he was on track to do a little more.
Even without the coronavirus, the counter in the JPL would, however, clock at a maximum of 31 games. A lack of regularity therefore runs like a thread through his stay in Jan Breydel, and not only with regard to his choices on the field.
Sporadically, Dennis was only sidelined for sporting reasons, he was occasionally suspended. 26 yellow cards, only three less than his total number of goals, in 112 duels seems quite a lot for an attacker.
It is part of his fickle and unpredictable style, although his debatable red card against AA Gent in 2019 remains his only exclusion to date. In that sense, the idiosyncratic barrel of feints does not constitute a risk factor. Nevertheless, Club had to do without him regularly, mainly in their own country for various reasons.
Of the 30 JPL games that Dennis contested in his first year, only 26 remained – barely 17 of them for the playoffs. Last season, he also did not appear between the lines in the regular season nine times.
POINTS WITHOUT DENNIS
At first glance, that cost Club Brugge relatively few points, although a dominant team were of course almost ignored at the time.
Of the 17 lost points, six were noted in the matches without Dennis, also in the draw against Genk and the only defeat to visit at Antwerp, he started on the bench.
Although the Nigerian could not turn the tide as a substitute, the balance is still striking.
The year before is even more striking. After an excellent performance in the Champions League – where he is not yet, but has always been on the appointment since last season – against AS Monaco, Dennis ended up in the rag basket for a month.
Not the only one, and the weeks before Club had already been sputtering somewhat, but in the following five matches, Leko’s troops could only win once.
Fifteen of the 34 lost points came that year in matches without Dennis, another five in matches in which he was only allowed to fill in.
Despite his modest personal statistics, with 29 goals and 12 assists in 112 matches for Club, those figures speak volumes about his impact.
Not only in the offensive sense, where the sometimes selfish opportunist is certainly a scourge for any defence on a good day.
Thanks to Leko’s lessons, he also makes a serious contribution defensively. Efforts that are underestimated by many, but greatly appreciated by the attentive fans, teammates and coaches.
Even though they curse themselves just as often when Dennis puts on his blinkers again, loses the overview and continues to attempt impossible actions without success.
EXAMPLE OF DOKU
The dissatisfaction that Leko sometimes expressed at the time about his tactical discipline, on the other hand, is a thing of the past, even when he has a bad day in possession – which of course happens to him several times.
A feather in the hat of the Croatian coach and Dennis himself, who does not alter the fact that his limited statistics remain a thorn in the side.
Here and there it even sounds that Club, who hope to sell their star player for between 20 and 25 million Euros, for a much lower amount.
If they fail to renew his current contract, those fears may well become reality. Dennis will start his last contract year next summer, usually not exactly the moment when teams eagerly come knocking on the door with the big money.
Certainly not for an attacker who barely records one decisive action per 2.73 appearances, or so it goes, although that may not be so bad.
Dennis is not inferior to Jérémy Doku (2.85), who just brought Anderlecht 27 million Euros.
Admittedly, Doku is still five years younger, but at the age of 23 Dennis will also have a lot of years to improve.
In addition, he has a few trumps compared to the winger of Stade Rennes, which is even faster – and if Red Devil has a lead, of course.
Dennis is more versatile, physically stronger and has featured in the Champions League.
Doku will probably become a better player in the long run. For those who are the main focus of the present, however, Dennis may be a more valuable addition to the selection.
(NO) CHOICE FOR CLEMENT
A less big gamble: it seems a strange statement when it comes to the dribble butt. After all, his inconsistency is not limited to his actions on the field, but extends to the question of whether he will appear between the lines at all. So unreliable, but no less indispensable for Club Brugge.
Although the constant threat that Dennis brings is not translated into concrete statistics, the figures on profit and loss are clear.
The champions gave Eupen and Zulte Waregem a beating without Dennis, in the simple victory against Anderlecht he also only participated for 15 minutes.
It is therefore not as if the Bruges chances against KV Oostende stand or fall with the chaotic enigma, which, in the absence of better strikers – a problem that does not make his task any easier – will probably take place again.
In the end, Clement can still choose exactly where he plays him.
We can certainly advise him to use Dennis again from the start, and for longer than one half.
Even if he does not put his name on the scoreboard, or even play at top level, the chances of winning points will increase significantly. After the two out of nine points run, Club Brugge can do with Dennis playing.
Adapted Voetbalnieuws.be
