With the football season gearing up for an exciting end to the current season, the top leagues across Europe are getting all the attention. However, the leagues down the pecking order are doing equally well, and the championship remains the gold standard of second-tier club football on the planet. Leicester City look likely to take the top spot, but after them, it is a slugfest between Leeds United, Ipswich Town, and Southampton. Leeds are second in the table and a major reason for that has been the rise of Georginio Rutter, the 21-year old hot shot who has dazzled all with his impressive displays. The club were already blessed with the incredibly talented Archie Gray and now have found another young star in their ranks.
At such a young age, Rutter has shown he has a real chance of becoming a star for a Premier League team. Even if Leeds fail to return to the Premier League, several clubs will line up to sign him this summer.
So, who is Georginio Rutter and how good is he?
Georginio Rutter profile
Georginio Rutter started his football career aged five at his local club Ménimur, based in Plescop commune in north-western France. His initial years were spent at this club before he moved to Vannes where he stayed for three years. It was at Vannes where he caught the eyes of Ligue 1 club Rennes’ scouts.
Rutter took the opportunity with both hands and was promoted to the reserve squad in just one year and then to the senior team. He only played 41 minutes in the 2020-21 season. With limited opportunities at the club, he boldly decided to leave France and join Bundesliga club TSG Hoffenheim.
He took no time adjusting in the club and became a part of the senior team. And he came to the forefront in the 2021-22 season, scoring eight goals. It was expected that he would reach even greater heights the next season. However, he scored only two goals in the first half of the season.
Despite this, he got the offer to join Leeds United, who played in the Premier League then. The club had huge trust on his potential which is why they forked out €40 million to sign the younger. Rutter made several appearances as a substitute for his new team and got one assist in the season’s final game.
Leeds however were relegated that season. While it proved disastrous for the club financially, Rutter has immensely benefited from it as he made rapid strides in his game play in the Championship.
Georginio Rutter stats
Georginio Rutter always had shown of being a great talent but it is only in the current season where he has actually started to fulfill it. After playing 33 games, the Frenchman has six goals and 12 assists (the joint-most in the league) to his name. One of his most incredible performances came recently against league Leicester City, where he provided two assists to help his team win the game 3-1.
Rutter has been posting numbers that are the dream for any creative attacker. He tops the chart in the league for Expected Threat (xT) from passes. He also provided the most successful through balls (23) and the second-most successful dribbles (99).
In total, he has created 70 chickens for his team among the top players in the league.
Data from fbref shows that he is among the top one percentile of wingers on metrics such as key passes, passes in the final third, goals creating actions, passes into the penalty area.
Georginio Rutter vs Leicester:
74 touches
25/34 succ. passes
13 duels won
8 opp. box touches
6 succ. take-ons
6 defensive actions
5 times fouled
4 chances created
4 passes into the final third
4 fouls
3 ball recoveries
1 tackle won
1 interception
1 shot
1 assist 🅰️Let’s go… pic.twitter.com/tH7pvJqMGc
— LUFCDATA (@LUFCDATA) February 24, 2024
Georginio Rutter style of play
At Leeds, Rutter has been given the role of an attacking midfielder with licence to roam all across the frontline. And this is evident in his heatmap where he is all across the opposition’s half. Rutter is equally adept at both passing and carrying the ball.
What makes him special is that he is capable of playing both an attacking midfielder and centre-forward. His hold up play allows him to operate as the lone striker and reminds us of prime Robert Lewadnwoski. However, in the long run tha attacking midfielder is the position where he can bring his best for the team.
Rutter has also improved his defensive game massively this season winning close to 50 per cent of his duels in the attacking third of the pitch. This is proven by his defensive stats where he is now among the top ten percentile of attackers in winning tackles, making interceptions and ball recoveries.
Georginio Rutter potential
When Georginio Rutter switched to join The Whites, his dream must have been to play week in and week out in the Premier League. While Leeds were eliminated, that dream was only delayed. With the performance that has produced Ruttter has mastered the Championship and now needs to take on bigger challenges. The Premier League offers him the perfect stage for him to do this.
At the end of the last season, Rutter was very low on confidence after Leeds’ relegation. He was even subject to interest from Borussia Dortmund but chose to stay at the club and has managed to make a remarkable turnaround which shows how mentally strong he is.
This is perhaps his greatest quality and one that is surely going to make him a future star.