Alex Cochrane spent a season out on loan at Scottish Premiership side, Hearts. He is currently under contract with Brighton & Hove Albion of the English Premier League. The Seagulls are looking to cash in on the youngster and sell him for the right amount. Hearts are keen on getting the defender back after a successful season. However, they are facing a challenge from other English clubs playing in the lower divisions. Cochrane is likely to leave in the summer, and Hearts is the only club where he could adjust easily.
The 22-year-old defender appeared in 31 matches for Hearts last season, and this included 25 starts. He was able to score two goals and also assisted his teammates to score two goals.
The above viz shows the pass start location as well as the threats created from passes at different time intervals. Cochrane made runs up and down the field and attempted passes into the dangerous areas. The player averaged 42.03 passes per 90 minutes and had an accuracy rate of 77.31%. These passes included 15 forward passes and 6.58 passes into the opposition’s final third per 90 minutes. The full-back attempted 1.56 dribbles per 90 minutes to get past the opposition defence but only took 0.67 touches per 90 minutes inside the opposition’s penalty box. By looking at the xT timeline, we can observe that as the match progressed, the player started to create more threats. Most of the threats from passes were created in the second half.
The above viz shows the pass receiving location of the young full-back. Cochrane received most of the passes in his left-back position. He received some of the passes inside the opposition’s penalty box. The 22-year-old attempted ten shots and only managed to hit the target twice. He scored two goals, and those goals were scored from the only shots on target.
Cochrane also made a few defensive contributions as he contested 7.65 defensive duels, 3.1 aerial duels and 2.99 loose ball duels per 90 minutes. The player won 15.35% of defensive duels, 50.57% of aerial duels, and 36.9% of loose ball duels.
The above viz shows all the interceptions that were made by the player. Cochrane averaged 4.23 interceptions per 90 minutes, and most of them were made in the defensive third. The recovery rate was low as he only averaged 7.15 recoveries per 90 minutes, and 1.21 were made inside the opposition’s half.
Alex Cochrane could turn out to be a bargain for Hearts. He has already played for the team and will be a regular in their squad. Hearts are also playing in the UEFA Conference League next season, and the player might be tempted to make a move to the Scottish club.
