Abdul Rahman Baba | Chelsea FC

Name: Abdul Rahman Baba

Club: FC Augsburg

Position: Left Back  

Age: 20 (02 July, 1994)

Nationality: Ghanaian

Height: 1.79 m

Weight: 70 kg

Key attributes: Tackling, Crossing

       How it all started

 

            Born in Tamale, Ghana, Abdul Rahman Baba started his football adventures with Dreams FC. In 2011, the then 17-year-old Baba, was signed by Ghanaian top flight side Asante Kotoko; a move that accelerated his rise greatly. A highly promising first season was capped by a nomination, and subsequent runner up spot, for the Discovery of the Year award. During that time, Baba also earned his first caps for Ghana's under 20 team. His time with Asante Kotoko however was short-lived, with various clubs, reportedly, fighting for his services. Clubs like Manchester City, Napoli and Arsenal were among that illustrious group, and if reports are to be believed, the young player was penciled in for a two-week trial with the North London club. Whether these clubs were legitimately interested or were used by the agent is tough to assess, however customary problems regarding work permits would have probably endangered any move to an English club. 

With that in mind, it can be seen as surprisingly unsurprising that he decided against every top club, and joined newly promoted Bundesliga side SpVgg Greuther Fürth. Fürth, not primarily known as go-to-club for foreign whizkids, had the argument of regular first team football. A feat that, to an 18-year-old, might have seemed more attractive than a big name club.

His two-year stay with Fürth essentially proved to be a mixed bag. While he showed promise and athleticism, lack of consistency coupled with the occasional errors brought the player down a little. Fürth's relegation did not help Baba either, on the contrary. While he continued to get more secure and experienced during his time in the 2.Bundesliga, it became swiftly obvious that he was much more suited to the faster pace of topflight football. In Baba's defence, taking part in the under 20 World Cup, finishing third, might have impacted his pre-season and subsequent start with his club. That difference between leagues, and his first year with Fürth, rather than his second, must have been enough for FC Augsburg to sign Baba in August 2014 for €2.5m. Before making the 100 miles journey south to Augsburg, Baba signed off in style, scoring twice in the Frankenderby, against bitter rivals 1.FC Nürnberg.

His time at FC Augsburg

Back in the Bundesliga, Abdul Baba swiftly picked up where he had left it before Fürth's relegation. Even though he had big boots to fill, Matthias Ostrzolek had just moved to Hamburg, he had the full confidence of the club. Augsburg's director of football, Stefan Reuter, stated about Baba: "He is a young player who has the potential to develop and he also wants to prove himself in the Bundesliga." Coach Weinzierl said that Baba "would add another dimension" to Augsburg's play. And he did. Even though Augsburg lost 2-0 to Hoffenheim in Baba's debut, he added drive and energy to their game, as well as putting in the most crosses. Game after game, Augsburg's and Baba's performances became better and more secure, resulting in a league-wide 3rd and 1st spot for Baba, in assists (4) and tackling (4.7 pg), respectively.

Two months ago, Baba was given his full debut for the National Team by Kwesi Appiah. While a highlight for the player and a confirmation of his progress, it has already led to some friction between his club and the federation. Stressing the player's importance, coach Weinzierl voiced his frustration regarding poor planning by the Ghanaian football association, as Baba only returned to Germany late Friday night, despite their game being played on Wednesday. Augsburg had to leave Baba on the bench and possibly due to his exclusion, trailed 0-2 by half-time. Even though Baba joined, a rather unsettled Augsburg side, it is impressive just how swiftly he has become almost irreplaceable for them. 

What style of player is he?

	Baba	Rodriguez
Tackles	4.6	2.2
Interceptions	2.9	2.4
Fouls	0.8	0.9
Clearances	3.5	2.9
Dribbled Past	1.5	0.4
Blocks	0.4	0.1
Goals	0	3
Assists	4	1
Acc. Crosses	0.8	1.3
Key Passes	1.1	1.8
Dribblings	1.3	1.4
Dispossessed	0.5	1.1

Abdul Rahman Baba can be considered a highly attacking left-back, who despite his eagerness to join attacks, does not forget his defensive duties.  Furthermore, he does not necessarily interpret the left-back role in a more classical sense, especially regarding to his position. Similarly to the full-back roles seen with Guardiola's Bayern, he likes to come centrally, either to chase the attacker or to offer support in possession. Defensively, Baba is aggressive and tries to put early pressure onto the opponent - which ties in well with Augsburg's general style of play.

Together with Ricardo Rodriguez and Juan Bernat, Abdul Rahman Baba is part of a group of highly talented, and to Jogi Löw's disappointment, young foreign left-backs that put up impressive numbers every week. To put his strong start to the season into context, a comparison with arguably the best left-beck in the league seems apt.

 Strengths

• Crossing -  Crossing and firstly, getting himself into promising positions, is certainly one of Baba's key strengths. He is able to place most crosses into dangerous areas and with better movement, finishing from the strikers, his numbers would look even better.
• Dribbling - Even though it can look clumsy at times, due to his speed, balance and touch, Baba is able to dribble into dangerous areas without losing too many balls.
• Tackling - While being part of a united back-four, Baba's style of defending rather suits him in direct duels with his opponent, putting up a league-leading number of tackles per game.

Weaknesses

• Passing - Baba's passing accuracy is not the greatest and he tends to play sloppy passes at times. It has to be conceded though that most of his misplaced passes occur in the opponent's half, minimizing poor turnovers in his own half.  
• Defensive intelligence - As mentioned, his defensive strengths lie in 1v1 situations and anticipation, yet his defensive awareness/intelligence could definitely be improved upon. While he does not make any great individual errors as such, there are occasions where a more alert defender would spot danger and help out his centre-backs sooner.

Conclusion

Abdul Rahman Baba is only 20 years of age and only in his second Bundesliga season. Yet if he manages to sustain the form shown in the first 13 games of this season for longer periods, it would come as no surprise if the reported interest of big clubs in him, turns into actual interest real soon. While he still has flaws, he also already excels at certain aspects of the game. Another huge positive must also be his ability to keep a balance to his game. He is not an out-and-out defender, nor is he a second winger. Instead, he manages to utilise his attacking strengths without sacrificing defensive stability.