Best Alternatives to Samuel Essende

Playing Style Analysis

Essende is the Bundesliga’s most industrious physical anomaly, a Tier C striker who operates with the progressive vision of a deep-lying playmaker and the shot volume of a Golden Boot contender. Averaging 3.81 shots per 90, he sits in the league’s elite top 10%, yet his true value lies in his startling ability to move the needle from deep; his 2.69 passes into the final third place him in the top decile of all forwards. The counterintuitive insight here is that despite his 3.12 aerial wins per 90—a top 30% figure—he is less a traditional target man and more a high-value ball-winner, ranking in the top 20% for tackles won. The three closest DNA matches to Samuel Essende:

• Keke Topp(85% match) — A Target Man. Statistically, he stands out as a capable chance creator (1.1 key passes/90), a constant goal threat (3.6 shots/90) and strong in aerial duels (3.3 aerials won/90).
• Martijn Kaars(84% match) — A Forward. Statistically, he stands out as a regular goalscorer (0.20 goals/90).
• Oliver Burke(84% match) — A Complete Forward. Statistically, he stands out as a capable chance creator (1.2 key passes/90) and a regular goalscorer (0.32 goals/90).

Similarity uses per-90 performance across playing-style dimensions. How Player DNA matching works →