With Chelsea having been linked to Leicester City full-back Ben Chilwell, the Foxes are reportedly preparing a potential replacement, should England’s first-choice left-back leave this month. The Daily Mail has reported that Brendan Rodgers’ side have checked the availability of Manchester United defender Luke Shaw. But with Chilwell being one of the most consistent performers at the back in the Premier League, would Shaw, valued at £27m (Transfermarkt), be an adequate replacement for the 23-year-old?
So far this campaign Chilwell has appeared 18 times in the Premier League for Leicester City, yet Shaw has made just eight starts, due to injury. A concern for Rodgers must be the 24-year-old’s prior injury record, which has caused him to miss 114 English top-flight matches at a relatively early stage of his career. When he has been available, Shaw is yet to provide a goal or an assist in the Premier League this term, while Chilwell already has a goal to his name, as well as setting up teammates on three occasions.
However, defensively Shaw can restore some credit, as he has narrowly averaged a higher number of tackles than his 23-year-old compatriot, along with committing fewer fouls. Although the Red Devils defender has made significantly fewer interceptions on average this season, which could indicate his positional awareness and ability to read the game is not at the same level as Chilwell.
Another statistic which suggests Leicester City would be better off sticking with their current left-back is that Chilwell has made 1.3 key passes per 90 minutes, while Shaw has less than half of that total. Clearly, the 23-year-old has more to offer in attacking areas, and that is why he has recorded substantially more assists. Furthermore, the Foxes full-back completes more dribbles around opponents, enabling him to get into optimal attacking scenarios and cementing his status as the preferred option.
Leicester City should think long and hard about whether they allow Chilwell to leave, there have been few better left-backs in the Premier League this season than the Foxes star. If they were to let Chilwell go, it would be preferable to find an alternative to Shaw, as his influence for Manchester United this season is incomparable to the Leicester man.
