Exploring Gael Sandoval’s Impact On The Wellington Phoenix
Six weeks ago the Wellington Phoenix fellas were in a rough space after four straight defeats and a covid outbreak. To be fair there was an FFA Cup semi-final run at the same time which offered a slight salve for the wounds... but overall it was pretty ugly. Then the team returned from a few postponements with restored health and ripped off three wins in a row (albeit losing in that FFA Cup semi in the middle of this A-League resurgence, ironically), to currently be sitting on a six-game unbeaten streak that’s seen them surge up the ladder from dead last to within goal difference of third place. And there’s still more than half the season still remaining. So much for that earlier crisis, aye?
We can pick through a myriad of things that are different since the Phoenix found form. The midfield combination of Alex Rufer and Clayton Lewis surely deserves a longer exploration at some point. Sammy Sutts has been a revelation at left-back – whereas last season he looked like a young midfielder trying to fill in (admirably enough) at LB, these days he looks like a genuinely natural fullback. You’ve got David Ball and Reno Piscopo finding the touch that eluded them earlier on. Old mate Jaushua Sotirio has started five games in a row, his longest starting streak since early in the 2019-20 season. Oli Sail is back and playing absolutely brilliant. Ufuk Talay’s done a magnificent job at managing this squad through the ups and downs. Lots of things are going well.
But let’s be honest, we don’t have to overthink this. It’s no coincidence that the switch got flipped in the game in which Gael Sandoval made his debut. It was an instant thing. Dude scored on debut and in six games he has hit the next three times all up with an assist to boot. Gary Hooper is the reigning king of the goal contributions per ninety mins idea and he’s hardly featured since Sandoval’s debut (where he scored one and set up another) yet the Nix have had not trouble getting that net to ripple over this winning streak thanks to the creativity of Gael Sandoval.
There are two factors at play here: Sandoval’s individual abilities and his impact on others. With the first factor, it’s massively easy to compare him to his compatriot predecessor Ulises Davila. For good reason. It’s not only that they’re both Mexican playmakers, that one is directly replacing the other, that they used to be teammates at Chivas, that Davila was instrumental in helping get the Sandoval signing done, that both get clattered by opposition defenders on the regular without nearly enough protection from refs, etc... although sure those things are all sufficient.
They’re also similar in the way they play though. Two blokes who are short in stature yet deceptively strong in possession, with great technical abilities and an eye for an incisive pass or a clinical finish. Sandoval, like Davila, has a roaming role from the right wing. The formation that Talay plays is a 4-2-2-2 where the attacking midfielders are more like wide tens than wingers but even within that you see Sandoval with a licence to drift infield and get himself involved. Here’s a heat map courtesy of Sofascore...
Plenty of red in the middle of that pitch. Also note how well he gets back in defence. For an import attacker who was brought in to address a concerning lack of creativity his work rate is super impressive. Remember that Davila would often be left up front on his own in those situations with the likes of David Ball and Jashua Sotirio expected to drop deeper and cover for him. Part of that was for counter attacking prowess but also they did seem to want to protect him somewhat defensively.
However there’s one major difference between Davila and Sandoval, that difference being that Davila drifted infield with an intention to shoot whereas Sandoval is a little more of a facilitator. Or is at least more patient in the attacking third. Incredibly, Gael’s three goals have come from just nine total shots. He’s attempting 1.69 shots/90m... compare that to Uli Davila who popped 4.06 shots/90m last season. Davila’s ability to create room for himself and then ping one from the edge of the area was iconic, plus it was also a reliable way to work a goal scoring chance. That’s cool. Sandoval doesn’t seem to operate like that though. He’s looking to pick passes or take on defenders... granted, he can certainly serve up a dish like this when needed...
Sandoval’s clinical scoring is very handy in a team of less than clinical finishers. He and Gary Hooper are on an island there. Hoops has 3 goals from 12 shots this season. Ben Waine is arguably close to that category too as a very good finisher though as an emerging local talent he clearly isn’t as well-rounded in other areas compared to those two superb imports. Goes without saying. How about some of the rest of these jerries though...
Reno Piscopo – 3 goals from 31 shots (and one goal was a penalty)
Jaushua Sotirio – 3 goals from 22 shots
David Ball – 1 goal from 24 shots
Clayton Lewis – 0 goals from 13 shots
Alex Rufer – 0 goals from 12 shots
Full credit to Scott Wootton: 1 goal from 1 shot. A slight niggle meant he debuted a couple of games after Sandoval so he doesn’t get the same synchronised focus here, though obviously his emerging presence has also been huge for the Phoenix. I can recall Wootton making one diving header block, can’t remember which game it was, that immediately felt like a Steven Taylor flashback... but thinking back that moment is more notable for how rare it is was a highlight reel defensive action from SW. Rare because Wootton has been next to flawless so far. He doesn’t have to make too many tackles or clearances or interceptions because he’s so rarely out of position that he’s turning folks back before they even get to him. Plus he’s a great communicator. Exactly what the Nix needed in a back four otherwise made up of converted defenders.
Back to Sandoval’s impact, he earned his first assist in the draw against Sydney FC when he set up David Ball’s first goal of the campaign. But of course assist tallies can be misleading. Take this Reno Piscopo goal from the Brisbane win. Sandoval doesn’t get the assist here, Jaush Sotirio does, but it’s Sandoval’s cutting edge pass that was the funkiest aspect of this move...
Prior to Sandoval’s debut, the Welly Nix blokes had scored 4 goals in six matches. Since he’s arrived they’ve scored 11 goals in six matches. Tell ya what, let’s break it down further...
Welly Nix With Sandoval: 4 W | 2 D | 0 L | 11 GF | 4 GA | +7 GD | 14 PTS
Welly Nix w/o Sandoval: 1 W | 1 D | 4 L | 4 GF | 14 GA | -10 GD | 4 PTS
No doubt about it that Gael’s hit the ground running. It could be even better too because he had great chances in the two draws that he wasn’t able to take. There was an overlap down the left side against Adelaide on about 53 mins which he struck straight at the keeper (it was 1-0, the Nix would go on to concede a last-gasp equaliser) and against Sydney FC it almost opened up for him four minutes into stoppage time, the game’s final breaths, but he pulled up to shoot from the edge of the box and hit it slightly high and slightly wide.
It’s worth having a look at how he gets into some of these situations. He’s a willing runner who knows how to occupy a defender. He also knows when to drop into a pocket of space. That Piscopo goal a couple paragraphs ago, he sees Sotirio pick up a sliced Wootton ball out towards the wing and he settles into a spot where he can collect the pass infield and then pick his best option with Ball and Sotirio making runs. Sotirio himself would make that direct run in behind rather than looking for the give-and-go. Which is sweet, that’s JS’s role. The point is that Sandoval’s a much more of a linker and that suits the lads around him sweetly.
Speaking of his impact on all them other dudes, you reckon it’s a fluke that his arrival has coincided with the Nix regaining their counter attacking prowess? Of course not. He draws defenders towards him and creates room for Sotirio in particular to attack. Sandoval’s infield drifts also mean he’s able to combine with Reno Piscopo and David Ball too, who have each suddenly surged back into form. How about this inlet pass from Sandoval, hitting Ball in the box right at his feet…
Especially Ball who, as you already know if you read The Niche Cache regularly, is himself more of a facilitator than a creator. When he was having to take on defenders earlier in the season, when he was having to take early shots... not so great. When he suddenly had another killer import around him to set the tone, somebody he could play the Robin to his Batman with, then we immediately began to see the best of him again. He doesn’t start the moves but he’s a magical asset to have once the wheels get churning.
Having an extra forward option willing to come towards the ball and who doesn’t shy away from playing in tight areas has also done wonders for Clayton Lewis and Alex Rufer in the midfield. The long-awaited emergence of that combination, which always made sense on paper but took a wee while to deliver the goods on grass, involves plenty more factors than just Sandoval’s presence. Decision making, coaching instruction, and individual confidence all feel equally as important. But for sure GS has helped. The whole team seemed to play with more trust and belief once they added a couple more reliable imports into the mix, the mere presence of Sandoval and Wootton (and Hooper when he’s played) allowing everyone else to operate with more freedom.
With one exception: Tim Payne. It was assumed by most that Payne would partner Wootton at CB once Wootts became available same as he did last season with Steven Taylor. Payne was the team’s best centre-back prior to Wootton’s arrival so it made sense. Yet that’s not what happened. Instead Josh Laws stayed there, keeping that right/left footed thing going on, with Tim Payne sliding across to right back again.
That shift incurs a small hit to the central defence (Wootton + Payne would still be the best CB combo) but does so whilst improving the entire backline overall. Because Payne is just pure and simply a much better defender than converted wingers Louis Fenton and Callan Elliot who had previously been splitting those RB duties. Like, it’s not even a contest. First round KO in that bout. Payne doesn’t have the same winger’s instincts as Elliot in particular (Fenton’s somewhere in the middle on both attacking/defending counts) but he hits a better cross than either and is stronger on the ball.
Remember that Gael Sandoval has that licence to roam. He’s not always going to be able to get back in support and that puts a heap of pressure on the right back. Pressure that Payne is better equipped to handle than the others – shout out to Payney on his three-year contract extension this week btw. Joins Oscar van Hattum and Finn Surman as the only blokes contracted until 2025 on the roster as it stands.
Wootton’s arrival should deservedly get more credit for this but defending is something that you do as a unit and that Payne/Wootton/Laws/Sutton back four has kept two clean sheets in four games. The only two clean sheets the Nix have kept all A-League season - though they did keep two in the FFA Cup, including one over 120 mins... for what that’s worth (starting back fours those days being: Fenton/Bozinovski/Surman/Mogg vs Western Utd & Elliot/Rufer/Laws/Sutton vs Melbourne City).
It’s funny how a player brought in to be an attacking force can also help instigate a much more efficient defence (again, Wootton deserves much more of the credit at that end of the pitch but even in the two games Sandy played which Wootts didn’t, they won both conceding only twice in total after leaking 10 goals in three previously). But football is a fluid sport. Same as in nature, you make a little tweak here and it can have unexpected consequences somewhere else. Football is also a simple game. And as Gael Sandoval is quickly proving, you put better players into your team and your team gets better. Huh, who’d have thunk it?
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