Diamonds in the Rough: Ebou Adams
Ebou Adams (24) of Forest Green Rovers has certainly done things the hard way so far in his career. The Greenwich-born midfielder started in non-league, did loans at step 8 clubs in the pyramid, moved up to Norwich when they were in the Premier League and played for their u-23s, dropped out of professional football again, before finally bouncing back with Forest Green in League Two last season.
Safe to say he has a point to prove and he spent all of last season proving that point week in, week out.
The Numbers
(all numbers are per 90 and from WhoScored. I’ve filtered out any players who made fewer than 15 appearances in the 19/20 season)
FGR had the 2nd highest possession and pass completion rates in League Two (54.7% and 75.4%, respectively) and, with that in mind, Adams puts up some decent defensive numbers: 1.5 interceptions per 90 (22nd) and 3.7 attempted tackles, 2.9 of which are completed (16th and 8th highest).
In addition to his work off the ball, Adams is a vital part of Rovers’ ability to retain possession. He’s fouled 4.8 times per 90, more than any other player in League Two, showcasing just how difficult he is to dispossess; opponents can’t get the ball off him by fair means, so they resort to fouling him.
If you compare Adams to other League Two central midfielders, he rates as:
- a solid and composed passer, getting through 46.4 passes (11th) and an average of 1 key pass per 90 (21st)
- an effective dribbler with 1.3 attempted (11th) and 0.9 completed dribbles (9th)
- a bit of a goal threat himself, shooting 1.5 times per 90, with 0.7 of those coming from inside the box (12th and 14th best).
In terms of actual output, his direct goal contribution is especially strong for a CM, with 3 goals and 4 assists (5th) to his name:
None of these metrics are individually that impressive, but the combination of them is; there are very few players who do so much, so well in League Two as Ebou Adams does.
The one area he has truly excelled in though has been in the air: 5.5 aerial challenges attempted(8th most) and 3.4 won (5th) is massive in a highly physical league. He moves around the pitch well, is strong enough to battle, and is technically sound enough to play in a team that is more possession-oriented than many sides higher up the English football pyramid.
vs Leyton Orient (A)
Forest Green generally operated in a variety of 3 at-the-back systems throughout the curtailed 19/20 season and Adams occupied all sorts of different roles within these shapes: sometimes the deepest in a 3, sometimes the more advanced in a 2, even as a secondary striker on occasions.
Against Orient, Adams often drifted out wide to support attacks and the opening goal from this game against Leyton Orient illustrates his combination play around the edge of the box, as well as his predatory instincts:
Around the 2:50 minute mark of the same video, you see Adams pounce on a sloppy throw out from Dean Brill to regain possession. From there he surges forward, plays a slightly overhit pass through to his striker and then carries on his run so he can pounce on the blocked shot to sweep home a finish with his left foot:
In the highlight that follows, Adams gets on the end of a cross and demolishes the goalkeeper as he wins the header:
There’s still a little bit of work to be done defensively; just after half-time, you can see Adams track back to win an initial tackle but he’s then a little too eager to use his body to reclaim the loose ball and gives away a foul that Orient ultimately score from:
vs Oldham Athletic (A)
If you want just one example of what makes Adams so impressive, watch these two passages of play:
In it, you’ve got him:
- dropping off to act as a 6
- making up a massive amount of ground and showing great anticipation to make an interception
- playing defence-carving, line-breaking passes with both feet
- tenaciously counter-pressing and smothering a potential counter attack
Might seem a bit weird to include this as it ultimately results in an Oldham goal, and you could possibly question Adams’ work back towards his own half, but everything else is so accomplished that you can almost overlook the conclusion.
You can get an idea of how he works in possession when he’s stationed higher up the pitch later on in the same game:
Strong enough to hold off his marker when Adams steps in front to get on the ball and agile enough to get turned on the dribble. Again, you could possibly question whether the foul he buys here is the result of being slow to lay the ball off to his overlapping team-mate — touch of the Jack Grealishes about his high fouls against count, perhaps.
On the defensive side of things, Adams is initially guilty of a bit of ball-watching here but recovers well to put pressure on Borthwick-Jackson. After the ball rebounds off the crossbar, he shows brilliant timing in the challenge to make a tackle on the edge of his own box:
vs Salford City (A)
FGR’s win over Salford gives you a flavour of why Ebou Adams is too good for this standard of football.
The first two clips are another neat encapsulation of what makes him standout. The first shows how he drives his team up the pitch, eating up space in front of him with the ball at his feet; the second has an opposition midfielder attempting a tackle and bouncing off him, followed by some close control by Adams after he exchanges passes with his centre forward:
Later in the game he pins the Salford player against the touchline and wins a throw. He then plays a smart first touch one-two with the thrower and another with a supporting player before unleashing a (deflected) shot into the bottom corner from the edge of the box:
Adams was also pivotal in Rovers’ 4th goal as it came from an incisive vertical pass that gets his side on the move quickly:
Despite leading 4–0, Adams steams across the pitch late in the game and crunches into a tackle to win possession in the final third that nearly results in a hat-trick for Stevens:
Involved in just the 3 out of Forest Green’s 4 goals then, for Adams. Decent day at the office.
vs Port Vale (H)
More of a mixed bag for Adams in this one —a loose first-time pass with his left foot gave the ball away in the centre circle, but some intense pressing helps to regain possession, and Adams supports the attack on the overlap:
He also gave away a pen with a slightly clumsy attempt to get back at a player who had broken into the box.
If we’re being harsh, Adams is sometimes too ball-orientated when defending his own area and it can cost his team if he allows runners to get past him:
As an aside, he seems to be quite good at winning penalties? His ability to get his body between the ball and a pressuring opponent lets him draw contact in the box. I’ve seen him do it twice:
vs Swindon Town/Crewe Alexandra/Crawley Town
Against better opposition, some of Adams’ defensive deficiencies show up. For the opening goal against Swindon, Adams is diligent in his marking and gets back into a good area, but he’s too focused on his man and doesn’t anticipate the cross, which he possibly could’ve cut out:
What’s clear is that he’s not naturally a defensively minded footballer — when his team are out of possession, he has a tendency to ball-watch and that leaves him flat-footed, making it more difficult to react to changes around him. He’s a much more effective player when he’s asked to be proactive:
…and when he can do his defending in the opposition’s half to create turnovers in dangerous areas:
…or seize upon loose balls to recover possession for his team high up the pitch:
He’s a high risk, high reward tackler, jumping forward into challenges when he spots an opportunity. It’s great when it comes off, but in a team where he was required to be more disciplined, this sort of gambling would badly disrupt his team’s defensive structure.
The second half of that Swindon game shows what a threat he can be going going forward, as virtually every clip has Adams making an off-the-ball run into the box from midfield to support his team’s attacks:
… that eventually culminates in Adams flicking on a corner to set up Forest Green’s last minute equaliser:
Adams is capable of contributing in possession deeper in the pitch too by acting as the pivot in midfield. In the reverse fixture against Salford, he hoovers up an interception, lays the ball off to a defender, offers for the return pass, sends it first time to Perry Kitching and then cycles in to fill the vacated space at CB as Kitching carries the ball up the pitch to the right wing, leading to a goal:
Likewise against Crawley, you can see Adams pick the ball up from his GK on a goal kick and act as the fulcrum for his side. His second pass out to the right is a bit overhit and it puts his team under pressure, resulting in a turnover and a dangerous delivery from Grego-Cox:
Although in that previous example his passing was a bit heavy, he does have the composure to adjust his feet quickly and is able to properly weight his passes out wide to get FGR on the move:
Interestingly, in Forest Green’s final match before lockdown manager Mark Cooper employed Ebou Adams as a centre forward for most of the game. The move was primarily a defensive and counter-attacking one: Swindon are a team who like to play out from the back so Adams was positioned higher up the pitch out of possession to disrupt their build-up, and in possession Cooper used Adams’ ability to compete for headers and willingness to run in behind as an outlet for his team, enabling them to play more directly than they usually do to avoid Swindon’s own pressing efforts.
I’m not going to clip things out of it because this could well be a one-off game plan that doesn’t get used again, but the match is available in full on YouTube, if you’re so inclined:
Playing him upfront worked incredibly well. FGR scored their first goal by using Adams like a target man off a long goalkick and he scored their second goal with a header that definitely falls into the “towering” category. He constantly made life difficult for Swindon’s CBs when they had the ball, offered a persistent threat on the counter, and passed the ball smartly when he had his back to goal.
It went so well that it makes me wonder whether Cooper uses him there more often next year and whether an enterprising team like Barnsley could sign him and convert him into a striker full time to harness his ability to press from the front.
Conclusion
Adams is still relatively inexperienced, with just over 100 appearances at any level to his name, despite being 24, but there’s certainly a player in there. I don’t think he’ll ever be a world beater, but for the right price he could be a fantastic gamble and someone whose game would translate into the Championship and maybe even higher. The League Two > Championship jump has been a difficult one in recent seasons (FGR’s own Reece Brown, Sammie Szmodics, Mo Eisa, and Jayden Stockley have all struggled with that jump to varying degrees), but perhaps it’s less intense for players who aren’t primarily working in the final third.
Forest Green recently took up the one-year extension option on Adams’ contract, which sees him tied down until the end of the 21/22 season, but if this pay cap is actually enforced, he could surely be tempted away by a club higher up the pyramid soon.
