There are some Celtic fans who are still not entirely convinced by Turnbull. They can’t fail to have been impressed with the 22-year-old in their match against Hibernian in the Scottish Premiership though as he put in a real coming of age performance. The midfielder set up the first two goals and made the third but his all-around play was just as impressive as those raw numbers. His strength and movement baffled the Hibs defence, and Turnbull was perhaps unlucky not to add his own name to the scoresheet.
Let’s have a look at what the stats have to say about his performance so far:
David Turnbull has been involved in seven goals so far for Celtic with four goals and three assists provided. Because of these numbers, Turnbull also has a very high expected goal contribution of 4.97 and averages an expected goal contribution of 0.49 per 90 minutes. He has played 11 matches so far and his high involvement in the goals Celtic has scored has made him a huge threat for any team they are playing against.
Turnbull has been starting in the left midfield as a more attacking player and has proved to be a menace for the defenders he has faced. He has highly been involved in bringing up the ball for Celtic in the final third and can make a smart pass into the penalty area. Turnbull is proficient playing with both feet which is his best quality because this gives him the freedom to explore multiple options while playing on the left flank.
Turnbull has been involved in playing through a number of positions for Celtic whenever required. The passes he has played into the final third and the penalty area have had a very high xT and he has been able to produce three assists with these passes he has attempted. Turnbull has attempted the most number of smart passes in the league with eight smart passes in 11 games. He has an average of 0.79 smart passes per 90 minutes and can find his teammates in small pockets of space.
The fact that Turnbull can play with both his feet gives him the advantage to take a shot from both sides of the pitch. He has attempted most of his shots from the left side of the pitch with a whole lot of shots coming from positions outside the penalty area. Turnbull has scored four goals so far this season, with three goals coming in the same match. He has the ability and technique to score goals from this range and most of his shots have been effective.
As seen in the above visual, Turnbull has had the most number of shots on target in the whole league and averages 1.38 shots on target per 90 minutes. The more shots he has on goal, the higher is the chance for him to score a goal. Having more shots on target also helps to maintain the pressure on the goalkeeper as well as the defenders and this gives an advantage to his teammates as well.
Turnbull has 0.39 goals per 90 minutes and lies in the 97th percentile for the same. Most of his stats are much higher than the median league value. He has also averages 3.059 shots per 90 minutes and this number is better than 95% of the players in the league.
Turnbull has produced some impressive numbers so far this season and has been one of the vital players for Celtic while moving forward. He has been in top form recently in their European games. Even if Turnbull is not scoring goals, he is highly involved in the build up play towards the goal and can guide his team while attacking. Postecoglou loves working with young players, and if the midfielder can continue on this trajectory it will be great news for club and country.
