Hibs news: Josh Doig recognised as top Scottish Premiership performer in new Europe-wide study

Josh Doig has been recognised as one of the Scottish Premiership’s top performers, according to a new study.

The CIES Football Observatory, the research arm of the Swiss-headquartered International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES) scrutinised 32 leagues in Europe in partnership with analysis organisation InStat to identify the top performing outfield players throughout UEFA member countries.

The data looked at more than 6,100 players plying their trade in leagues including the English Premier League, Ligue 1 in France, Serie A, and the Scottish top flight who had completed at least 1,000 minutes of domestic league action during the 2021/22 campaign.

Players were judged on performance level, playing time, and the sporting strength of both their club and league. They were then split into 15 different technical categories.

Josh Doig has been identified as a top performer in the Scottish Premiership

A host of variables were looked at – six attacking and four defensive as well as passing – including assists, interceptions, crosses and shots to create the top-performing player in the 15 different profiles.

Doig, who has played 37 times for Hibs this season in all competitions, has been ranked the best ‘defensive infiltrator’ in Scotland. Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva took that accolade for the English Premier League while Moroccan right-back Achraf Hakimi of Paris Saint-Germain did likewise for France’s Ligue 1.

Netherlands internationalist Denzel Dumfries of Inter Milan and Bayern Munich’s Canadian full-back Alphonso Davies were named the top-performing defensive infiltrators in Italy and Germany respectively.

Most of the players to take the defensive infiltrator crown in their domestic leagues are full-backs or wing-backs, although there is the odd midfielder or winger in the list. Doig has played as a left-back, left-sided centre-back, and left-wingback this season for Hibs and is the only Easter Road player in the list.

Stand-out qualities earning Doig his position in the table include his strength in the air and on the ground, his willingness to take players on, and his recovery ability.

Other Scottish Premiership players to have excelled in their position include Celtic collective Liel Abada, Kyogo Furuhashi, Jota, Carl Starfelt, David Turnbull, Greg Taylor, and Callum McGregor; Rangers trio Calvin Bassey, Alfredo Morelos, and James Tavernier; Dundee United pair Ryan Edwards and Dylan Levitt; Ross County striker Jordan White, and Hearts midfielder Cammy Devlin.

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