Rangers ace Ryan Kent named as AC Milan replacement option for Rafael Leao by ‘Moneyball’ data algorithms
Rangers winger Ryan Kent has been named as a possible target for AC Milan to replace star man Rafael Leao by ‘Moneyball’ data algorithms, Gazzetta dello Sport reports.
The reigning Serie A champions are owned by Redbird who use data analytics to plan the transfer windows at sister club Toulouse, in the style of former Oakland Athletics Major League Baseball GM Billy Bean and assitant Paul DePodesta, whose data-driven model were the basis of the book and then film “Moneyball”, starring Brad Pitt.
With analytics creeping further and further into professional sports Gazzetta tasked three AI analysis companies to use data to come up with a list of suitable replacements for Milan’s “champion on the left” Leao who may be on the move this summer.
The Driblab, Stats Perform and Wallabies computers named exit-bound Ibrox ace Kent alongside a host of English Premier League options, behind top choices – Ademola Lookman from Atalanta, Luis Sinisterra of Leeds United, Armand Lauriente of Sassuolo, Lens’ Ikoma-Lois Openda and obscure choice Bryan Teixeira of Sturm Graz.
Kent’s contract is expiring in the summer and currently the Englishman looks to be on the way out of Rangers.
Available
Kent may seem like an unlikely choice to fill the boots of Leao who is one of the undoubted stars of European football, but based purely on data he is apparently a candidate.
That perhaps shows that the Light Blues need to do more to keep hold of him, although the longer it goes without a deal that has long been mooted the less likely that is.
It appears now the club are prepared to get to the end of the season and take their chances, with Kent perhaps hoping to test the market before making a decision.
The 26-year-old has been a key part of the Rangers attack over his 215 games for the club, but is regularly seen as underwhelming in terms of goals and assists compared to Celtic counterparts.
His 10 and 11 respectively in the SPFL for the 55th title-winning season have never been matched, and while 33 and 56 respectively are not appalling numbers there is a lingering feeling that they should be significantly higher.
The number of penalties he wins when cutting in from the left can’t be overlooked, and for all he could improve his output he will be a difficult man to replace if he does leave Glasgow this summer.
Whether Milan are ready to fully embrace the data analytics model and turn to a comparatively unheralded candidate to replace their own exit-bound star remains to be seen, but the numbers, ironically, suggest plenty will be lost if Kent moves on.
In other Rangers news, a world-record £21.5million compensation could help the club bring a former teen sensation back to Ibrox.