FC Augsburg

Augsburg left-back Baba Rahman has joined Chelsea, as the London club has confirmed a deal for the defender.

Mirror Football passed along the confirmation from the Blues, which came a day after DW Sports reported Rahman wouldn't be in the Augsburg lineup on Saturday, as he was in London finalising his move to Chelsea. 

"We didn't want to sell Baba," Augsburg general manager Stefan Reuter said, per DW Sports, "But for the fee Chelsea have paid, we were in no position to reject the offer."

The Blues have allegedly agreed an initial £14 million deal, with the fee potentially rising to £21.7 million, as detailed by Oliver Todd and Simon Jones of the Daily Mail on Aug. 11:

Talks between Chelsea and Augsburg have been ongoing for weeks and the agreement will see a further £3.5m paid in bonuses depending on Chelsea performances, £700,000 after the 21-year-old completes 20 games and a further £3.5m after he has made 100 appearances — meaning the total value of the deal could reach almost £22m.

On July 23, Augsburg chairman Jonas Hoffman warned the Blues his club did not need to sell, per Bild (h/t Miles Chambers of Goal.com).

However, he would have been all too aware of the lure presented by Chelsea to Rahman, who will compete with Cesar Azpilicueta for the left-back role at Stamford Bridge.

Here's the type of talent Jose Mourinho secured:

Chelsea need a new option after Filipe Luis returned to Atletico Madrid after just one season in England's top flight, leaving Azpilicueta as the only experienced cover in that position.

Rahman's arrival gives Mourinho the option of switching Azpilicueta to the right of his defence should he need to deploy Branislav Ivanovic more centrally.

If major European clubs are seeking a cheaper alternative to Wolfsburg left-back Ricardo Rodriguez, then target Augsburg's Abdul Rahman Baba.

Before you learn about Baba, the transfer stock of left-backs has been inflated after Manchester United spent €38.4/£30 million on Luke Shaw, primarily on upside not productivity. 

United legend Paul Scholes said he would spend that amount of money on a "centre-forward who's going to score 30 goals a season," not a left-back. 

Valued by Real Madrid at €91/£78 million, Bale takes 0.5 more shots to score per goal than Rodriguez, who has added defensive responsibilities as a left-back.

This means Rodriguez is a more efficient shooter than Bale and a more productive creator averaging 1.2 more key passes per game (pass leading to scoring chance). 

Completing 32.3 more passes per game than Bale, Rodriguez also functions as a passing outlet. 

So far this season from an attacking perspective, Rodriguez is matching Bale.

From a defensive point of view, Rodriguez made 103 tackles last season and has already won back the ball 30 times in six league games this season (13 tackles, 17 interceptions). 

Rodriguez is on course for greatness at left-back, a position that is often the Achilles heel of teams. 

Backed by €93.77/£73.19 billion-valued automobile company Volkswagen, Wolfsburg have financial clout, per Raphael Honigstein at The Guardian: "Traditionalists have sneered at VfL [Wolfsburg] ever since their ascent to the Bundesliga in 1997 and were quick to point out that Volkswagen have generously subsidised the team to create an unfair advantage."

Therefore, Wolfsburg are not under financial pressure to sell Rodriguez to the first club that lodges a substantial bid.

Regarding Rodriguez's future, what Wolfsburg should do is hold out for a Galacticos-like transfer fee (this is presuming there is no buyout clause valued at €30/£23.4 million or less). 

Rodriguez's transfer value puts him out of range for many European clubs, so this is where Baba comes in as a viable cost-effective alternative. 

Baba leads the Bundesliga in tackles per game (5.7), 3.5 more tackles per game than Rodriguez.

Baba's performances for Augsburg in the Bundesliga reaffirms why he was highlighted as a key player for Ghana during the 2013 FIFA U20 World Cup, per FIFA's official website: "competitive left-sided defender with excellent technique and forceful attacking runs."

Borussia Dortmund can attest to Baba's "forceful attacking runs."

In Augsburg's 3-2 defeat to Dortmund, Baba created more scoring chances (three) than Henrikh Mkhitaryan (one), who was playing on the opposite wing for BVB.

Baba led the game in assists (two).

Both his crosses occurred in the last 10 minutes of the game (82nd and 89th), which shows his high fitness levels. 

The ability to take the ball out of defence and into midfield is a trait Baba shares with Rodriguez.

Both complete 80 percent of their dribbles (Baba; 83 and Rodriguez; 86).

Augsburg management took a calculated gamble on Baba who displayed promise after taking over from Heinrich Schmidtgal as Greuther Furth's starting left-back.

"We are convinced that his [Baba's] sporting qualities fit in with our team," Augsburg general manager Stefan Reuter said, per the club's official website (h/t Nathan Quao at Citi FM). "He is a young player who has the potential to develop."

While Baba played for the worst team in the Bundesliga (Furth finished with 21 points from 34 games), he was a more productive ball-winner than Rodriguez was in his first season at Wolfsburg.

Baba won back possession 6.3 times compared to Rodriguez's 4.4.

Also, Baba was more proficient since he completed 3.5 tackles per foul, 0.9 higher than Rodriguez. 

Two years and eight months ago, then-Wolfsburg manager Felix Magath predicted that Rodriguez would become a "pillar" of the team.

It was a bold statement from Magath since Rodriguez was NOT a can't-miss prospect. 

The FIFA technical study group opted to select Benjamin Siegrist, Granit Xhaka, Haris Seferovic, Nassim Ben Khalifa and Pajtim Kasami over Rodriguez as more outstanding players for Switzerland during the 2009 FIFA U17 World Cup, per FIFA's official website. 

In Bed With Maradona slated Rodriguez giving him a D grade: 

In early November we were extremely surprised to read in a number of newspapers and spurious transfer frothing websites that Rodriguez had been monitored by Milan and both the Manchester clubs, while also being identified as a long term replacement for Ashley Cole at Chelsea.

All this just days after he was dropped at Wolfsburg.

Were we looking at the same player?

Full disclosure: In April 2012, I ranked Zakaria Labyad, Julian Draxler, Iker Muniain, Isco, Thibaut Courtois, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ola John, John Guidetti, Raphael Varane, Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Mario Gotze as better teenage prospects than Rodriguez, per Bleacher Report. 

Rodriguez's red flags at the time were off-putting and same can be said about Baba: Inaccurate passer (60.7 pass completion percentage) and defensive positioning can be shoddy. 

To the all major European clubs that were late to the Rodriguez party, do not make the same mistake with Baba. 

He has the potential to enjoy a meteoric Rodriguez-like rise.

@allanjianga

+allanjiang

Statistics via WhoScored 

Can Augsburg's South Korean international Hong Jeong-ho, a 24-year-old, 6'1", 163-pound centre-back, make inroads into his Bundesliga career next season?

To address that question, this article grades Hong's performance against Russia at the 2014 FIFA World Cup and provides a scouting report on his debut Bundesliga season with Augsburg. 

Hong vs. Russia Grade: A

Russian goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev's blunder is the talking point of South Korea's 1-1 draw against Russia, but one underplayed moment was the injury to Hong. 

Hong was quietly having a solid game clearing the ball 12 times, per Squawka.com. 

In addition, Hong blocked a shot, made two tackles, intercepted a pass and completed 89 percent of his passes. 

A minute after Hong was replaced by Hwang Seok-ho, Russian substitute Alexander Kerzhakov took advantage of scrappy South Korean defending and poached a goal. 

South Korean centre-backs Hwang and Kim Young-Gwon had their hands up in the air, perhaps in homage to 2PM, rather than doing their job: Tackling. 

It was as inexcusable as Akinfeev flapping at South Korean substitute Lee Keun-Ho's snap shot.

Hong going off was a factor in South Korea's defensive breakdown.

There was a lack of communication between Hwang and Kim. 

To exacerbate the matter, not only did Hwang not defend, he muffed his clearance which rebounded off Russian right-back Andrey Eshchenko leading to Kerzhakov's goal. 

Hong's absence was decisive in Russia gaining a point. 

Hong Augsburg Summary

Augsburg manager Markus Weinzierl, one of the brightest young coaches in Europe, made Hong the first-choice backup centre-back. 

"[Hong] was the desired candidate to strengthen our defence," Weinzierl said, per Bundesliga.com. "We'd be delighted if Hong could develop in the same way Ja-Cheol Koo and Ji Dong-Won did last season."

Hong started four Bundesliga games alongside Jan-Ingwer Callsen-Bracker and two with Ragnar Klavan, the latter two players being Weinzier's preferred centre-back pairing. 

Hong spent his first season adjusting to Bundesliga football and acclimatising to life in Germany, which was assisted by his compatriot Ji. 

Hong has size, is good on the ball and possesses outstanding recovery speed.

Chasing down Hamburg's Hannover 96 loanee Artjoms Rudnevs, Hong pressurises the Latvian centre-forward into a rushed shot. 

Mainz right attacking midfielder Nicolai Muller's shot is blocked by Hong as he quickly closes down the shooting angle. 

Hong only conceded 0.4 fouls per game, so he is a safe tackler. 

What Hong needs to work on is being compact at the back. 

Blindsided by an over-the-top ball, Hong lets in Schalke right-back Atsuto Uchida.

Hong is out of position as Hertha Berlin centre-forward Sandro Wagner shoots on goal forcing Augsburg goalkeeper Marwin Hitz into action. 

Bottom Line

Hong was having a great game against Russia, but he will feel incomplete as his body betrayed him again.

If Hong can stay fit and consistently replicate his display against Russia in the Bundesliga next season, he will win a starting position at Augsburg.

@allanjianga

+allanjiang

Statistics via WhoScored.com

New Augsburg signing Raúl Bobadilla is bringing his controversial act back to the Bundesliga having crashed and burned his opportunity with 16-time Swiss league champion Basel. 

"We look at the signing of Raúl Bobadilla as a very important one for our attack," Basel said in a club statement on Jan. 4, 2013, via UEFA.com. 

Five months later, Basel president Bernhard Heusler foreshadowed the sale of Bobadilla, who was in legal strife after being caught by police for speeding 61 km above the limit. 

"[The club] can't tolerate such behavior," Heusler said, according to the Associated Press (via Sports Illustrated). 

Wait, isn't that exactly what Bobadilla's former employer Borussia Mönchengladbach said in 2010? Yep.

"We cannot tolerate such behaviour," said Mönchengladbach director of sport Max Eberl in response to Bobadilla's assault of Sérgio Pinto, from PA Sport (via SBS The World Game). "Raúl has damaged the team [...] therefore the disciplinary and financial measures reflect this."

Bobadilla was demoted to the reserves, fined €50,000 and later loaned out to Greek club Aris—in reality, he was temporarily exiled from the team. 

"It would have been difficult for Raúl to get into the side in the second half of the season," Eberl said when asked to explain why the club sold Bobadilla to BSC Young Boys, via Borussia.de.

It was wasted potential on both sides with Mönchengladbach spending €4.2 million on the player and Bobadilla scoring twice and creating a goal in a 4-0 win over Köln a few matches prior to Pepe-ing Pinto.

With 21 goals and nine assists in 35 games, Bobadilla played the best football of his life for YB.

A hat trick against Udinese and two assists vs. Liverpool helped erase doubts of him being a flat-track bully—for Mönchengladbach, he never scored against Bayern Munich. 

Yet, what did Bobadilla gain infamy for as an YB player?

Verbally abusing an official in front of a television crew and receiving a red card seven minutes after coming on as a sub for scraping Guillaume Katz's head with a hammer-fist. 

Bobadilla has been given chances by Mönchengladbach, YB, Basel and now Augsburg—it's only a matter of time before his high-risk behaviour catches up to him. 

He only needs to look at ex-Basel player Nenad Savic being convicted of selling cocaine or former Bayern defender Breno—once regarded as the future of Brazil's back line—being jailed for arson as reasons to drop the gangster mentality. 

El Hadji Diouf once said, via LFCHistory.net, "Everyone knew me to be a thug and they were all scared of me."

Listed as a 2002 FIFA World Cup all-star and (blasphemously) included in Pelé's FIFA 100, people forget that Diouf was a world-class talent; instead, they'll remember him as one of football's most hated players.

"The stigma of what you (Diouf) did (spit) will follow you round for the rest of your career," said Liverpool legend Tommy Smith, via The Daily Mail. "You'll never live it down."

Ask Johnny Leoni, Matteo Gritti, Miro Varvodic, Roman Burki and Zeljko Brkic about Bobadilla, they'll speak about his immaculate free-kicks. 

Talk to his former managers and they'll tell you Bobadilla is an angry, complex, moody and at times, uncoachable footballer.

It's the flawed-genius syndrome.  

The latest barrier Bobadilla needs to overcome is a knee injury, and instead of going to the nightclub as means of "recuperation," like Andriy Voronin, Bobadilla needs to exercise discipline. 

At Augsburg, Bobadilla must watch, learn and adapt to the professionalism shown week in, week out by German journeyman Sascha Mölders. If Bobadilla had Mölders' work ethic, the Argentine striker would be one of Kicker magazine's highest-rated players.

Named by UEFA as a rising Europa League star, there's one thing stopping Bobadilla from fulfilling his potential: himself. 

+allanjiang

Statistics courtesy of WhoScored.com, Squawka.com and Transfermarkt.co.uk.