The Stats That Showcase the Quality of Napoli’s Mario Rui
Napoli’s wing-back, Mario Rui, enjoyed a great season. At the end of the campaign, he was picked in numerous lists for Team of the Season. But, what are the most telling stats of the player’s evolution?
Mario Rui is a Portuguese player. He got his start in the youth team of Benfica, before being moved out on loan to teams like Fatima, or Spezia.
The wing-back’s big break came in 2016, when he joined AS Roma, initially on loan. The Serie A side later transferred the player outright for €6 million. He joined Napoli in 2017. And, although he played often, there were many who believed that the player had failed to impress.
Manager Luciano Spaletti has, so far, been the man to get the very best out of Mario Rui. The 2021/22 campaign has been by far the footballer’s best. What are the stats that stand out?
According to several stats websites, Mario Rui enjoyed the best performance of any Napoli player. It was a relatively successful season for the Partenopei. They battled for the Scudetto throughout the campaign losing out only in the final weeks.
Rui played 34 league games for Napoli this season. Only Piotr Zielinski and Elif Elmas were involved in more matches.
The wing-back provided 5 assists and had an xA (expected assists) of 3.3.
It was with his passes that Mario Rui excelled. The Portuguese player is in the top 10% in the top 5 European leagues for attempted passes. He also has a completion ratio of 84%.
Rui is also in the top 20% for shots on target. Per 90 minutes, on average, he contributed to 2.43 shot-creating actions.
The rest of his stats reveal a well-rounded player that has provided consistent performances for Gli Azzuri.
Having Mario Rui at left-back is one less thing to worry about for Luciano Spalletti and Napoli as they prepare for the 2022/23 campaign.