AFC Bournemouth
AFC Bournemouth have added Romanian goalkeeper Andrei Radu to the goalkeeping department this evening.
The 26-year-old arrives from Italian side Inter Milan and he arrives at Vitality Stadium with a host of domestic and international experience.
The shot-stopper will provide competition to Neto and Darren Randolph but what should Cherries fans expect from him?
STRONG SHOT STOPPER
Radu enjoyed a strong loan spell with French side Auxerre last season, impressing despite the team’s on-field struggles.
He showed particular strength in his shot-stopping capabilities, putting himself alongside the best in Europe in the last year.
When comparing the goals he conceded to expected saves, he places in the 92nd percentile, displaying a high performance in stopping shots last season.
His 73.9% save percentage is comparable to Neto’s 74.6%, highlighting the quality standard of his displays in the last year, particularly in Ligue 1.
The save from Andrei Radu ✋🛑#SerieA pic.twitter.com/jHde9DrHb7
— Viaplay Sports UK (@ViaplaySportsUK) April 7, 2019
IMPRESSIVE AT SAVING PENALTIES
One area of Radu’s game that impressed in 2022/23 was his penalty saving capability, making two crucial penalty stops for Auxerre.
In a 1-1 draw with Nice, Radu saved from Gaëtan Laborde, doing well to tip over the striker’s powerful effort. It was the first time Laborde failed to score from the spot in his career.
A few weeks later, Radu repeated the feat as he made a fine stop from Strasbourg’s Habib Diallo, diving to his right to make an excellent one-handed save.
In his career, he’s also made penalty saves in games for Genoa and Avellino, with seven total spot-kicks taken against him failing to find the net.
For comparison, no Premier League goalkeeper made more penalty saves than Radu did last season.
COMFORTABLE ON THE BALL
Our newest goalkeeper has shown a capability to perform with the ball at his feet, showing an ability to adapt to the team’s needs.
According to stats website Fbref.com, Radu has only misplaced one short pass in his entire career, completing 99.6% of his attempted passes between five and 15 yards.
He's shown a similar ability on passes attempted between 15 and 30 yards in length, picking out an opponent on 98.6% of occasions.
This highlights how comfortable he is with the ball at his feet and how he’ll likely be able to fit into Andoni Iraola’s system when called upon.
