Is Parejo a better replacement for Busquets than De Jong? Analysed

According to reports, Xavi wants Barcelona to sign Dani Parejo in case Sergio Busquets leaves next summer.

The coach has played Frenkie de Jong in Busquets's position several times this season but the interest in Parejo is a suggestion that he doesn't fully trust the Dutchman in this role.

But is Dani really a better fit for Barca than De Jong? Before answering the question, there are three factors to consider.

Where they play on the pitch

Both Busquets and Parejo play as pivots, meaning that they stay centrally, lower than the other midfielders. Here are their heatmaps for this season, the red indicates in what zones they usually operate. Note that Dani is a bit more attacking than Sergio.

As for De Jong, we cannot use his overall heatmap from this season because he plays in a more advanced position.

However, if we look at the match against Real Betis when Frenkie replaced Busquets in the starting lineup, we see that the Dutchman tends to leave his zone. This is a common occurrence when De Jong plays as a pivot in a 4-3-3 formation.

Who passes the ball best

The pivot is supposed to be the link between the defence and the attack, dropping deep and starting the build-up.

Comparing the stats of the three players, we see that Busquets is more involved in his team's play (more passes, including progressive passes) although both Parejo and De Jong beat him in creativity. However, we have to keep in mind that both Dani and Frenkie play further up than Sergio.

Who defends better

Pivots play important defensive roles as they stop counters and win duels in midfield. In this regard, Busquets is far ahead of both Parejo and De Jong despite being older and regarded as sluggish.

Sergio was never fast and it was usually his intelligence and reading of the game that put him ahead of others. While Frenkie could compensate for it with his physicality, Parejo seems to be at a disadvantage.

If Barca are looking for a Busquets replica, perhaps Parejo is a better fit. He is a more attacking version of Sergio which may be useful against low blocks — but Xavi would have to compensate for Dani’s defensive frailty.

As for Frenkie, he is more of a box to box than a pivot. The Dutchman is at his best when he carries the ball forward and Xavi probably can't afford his single pivot to expose the backline with his roaming runs forward.