Real Madrid’s best player on loan might surprise you
By Ben Sundock
Oscar Rodriguez has subtly been one of the most exciting players in La Liga this season while away from Real Madrid. So much so, in fact, he is considered by many to be having the best season of any player spending time away from the Santiago Bernabeu.
Before being ruled out for the remainder of the La Liga campaign, Oscar Rodriguez was having the season of his career. While there is serious speculation as to the reason he will no longer be playing for Leganes this season, it is worth reviewing and applauding the stunning form of the young Spaniard.
After working his way up through the Real Madrid youth academy and making appearances for the Castilla side, Oscar has a real fighting chance to make Zinedine Zidane‘s first-team come this fall.
These last two seasons on loan in southern Madrid have shown that the attacking midfielder is a creative dribbler, an expert free-kick taker, and can create a spark no matter who the opponent is.
Making 29 league appearances, Oscar tallied nine goals and also provided two assists. There are two shocking stats that prove just how good of a player he has been on a team that is in danger of being relegated.
The first – and in my opinion one of the craziest stat I may have ever seen – is that Oscar has the highest free-kick conversion percentage in all of Europe! That’s right, better than Lionel Messi, better than Cristiano Ronaldo, everyone!
Oscar has converted on four of his 16 free-kicks this season for a success rate of 25 percent while Messi has converted four free-kicks as well but in 27 attempts (15 percent). If you haven’t already seen the goal Rodriguez scored against RCD Mallorca on June 19th, do yourself a favor and watch this art in motion.
The second stat that blows my mind is that after Leganes sold Martin Braithwaite to FC Barcelona and Youssef En-Nesyri to Sevilla, Oscar has racked up more goals than the rest of his teammates combined.
He has also been awarded Man of the Match four times – the most on the team – and is averaging just shy of a seven out of ten match rating for all those league appearances. The only weaknesses in his game are his passing ability (completing 73.5 percent of his attempts) and his lacking stamina.
While I still don’t know if he returns from loan and becomes a regular starter – he won’t – he could be a viable option off the bench much like Zizou uses Isco.
Next. There’s nothing wrong with listening to offers for Luka Jovic. dark
If Real Madrid is trailing, Oscar could be a great option as a late sub to provide some more attacking presence in the midfield without bringing on an out and out forward. However, both AC Milan and Villarreal are both rumored interested in signing the player and they could spend upwards of $24 million if president Florentino Perez gets his way.