Number one in the league: This FC professional is the best in his profession

1. FC Köln’s new game system focuses on the attack. But behind that, FC needs more clarity. Eric Martel is just growing into this role even more.

Under Gerhard Struber, 1. FC Köln has become a much more offensive team again. While Timo Schultz took a step back as Steffen Baumgart’s successor and moved FC’s game further back, the Austrian is responsible for the attacking department again.

Struber regularly plays from a line of four with two sixes, two ten in the half-offensive positions and two attackers. But of the two sixes, Denis Huseinbasic has a much more offensive role than the one next to him. Eric Martel is the more obvious classic next to the performer. The 22-year-old has Huseinbasic’s back.

The best six in the league

This role requires two things: running strength to be able to close the gaps that open in front of the Cologne defensive line; and duel strength to win the balls in direct duels that could otherwise be dangerous. The statistics from the 2nd Bundesliga show that Martel has done an excellent job in these two areas in the first eight games of the season.

With 107 duels won in the 2nd Bundesliga, Martel won the most duels of any player. No player was able to win the fight more often. The strong midfielder has shown clear improvement so far this season compared to last season. Fittingly, he is also the second highest player in the league with 97.28 kilometers covered. Only KSC’s Leon Jensen has run more this season – but only 400 meters (97.68km).

Key to success

But even when he has the ball, there is no Köln player who has a better pass rate than Martel. So far, 93.43 percent of all passes have reached your own teammate. This also puts Martel in the top five of the league (side note: Julian Pauli is sixth in the 2nd Bundesliga with 93.17 percent). No other Köln player scores above 90 percent; only 22 players in the league achieve this.

And so Martel, in his role as “Holding Six”, is currently the measure of everything in the 2nd league. There is no getting around the 22-year-old, and not just on the pitch. The U21 national player is also part of the Cologne team – and cannot be replaced. The Billy Goats currently do not have a similar player with similar qualities in their squad. So, at best, nothing should happen to Martel this season. Due to Köln’s offensive game philosophy, the duel is strong and running six is ​​one of the keys to success.