Jacob Stevens 
Harrison Delbridge in action for Incheon United. Photo: Wikipedia Commons - Imgloa2 CC BY 4.0 cropped
A distinct lack of investment compared to other areas of the pitch, coupled with the losses of nearly every defensive starter from last season (the only exception being Ryan Kitto), sees the Reds in desperate need of defensive players – if for nothing more than to be able to field a team.
Adelaide United’s defence has gotten worse and worse each season for nearly half a decade, and head coach Carl Veart is clearly already feeling the pump, experimenting with only using one centre back in their Australia Cup game against Blacktown City.
With Dutch legend Bart Vriends yet to make an appearance for the club, and very few established defenders in the squad, United have plenty of holes to fill across the backline.
In the first edition of our ‘Reasonable Recruitment’ series, Round Ball Australia takes a look at some of the available players that might suit Adelaide’s needs, making a point of focusing on those players who could feasibly make the move to the City of Churches.
No legendary 35 year-old European legends. We’re talking properly reasonable suggestions, how they stack up compared to United’s past starters, what their stats suggest about their play styles, and how they may (or may not) fit into United’s team.
For some clarity around the data wheels: The number in each wedge represents the raw statistic per 90 minutes played. The size of the wedge indicates how the player ranked against positional peers in the same season and league in which the data was collected.
Harrison Delbridge
Delbridge is currently playing for Incheon United in the K League 1, having made the move over from Melbourne City in 2021.
City supporters will remember Delbridge being highly spoken about, Reds fans will remember him being out-muscled by Al-Hassan Toure for Adelaide’s second goal in the 2019 FFA Cup Final.
The 32 year-old centre back has been a regular starter for Incheon, amassing almost 100 appearances for the side in his four seasons there.
Delbridge is a player who offers exceptional ball winning skills, featuring in the 90th percentile of all K League 1 CBs in the 2023 season for both ground and aerial duels won per 90.
He is also extremely efficient, winning 69.5 per cent of his duels, including 73.2 per cent of his aerial duels.
These stats suggest that Delbridge is firmly one of the best defenders in the league with his back to goal.
This suits Adelaide quite well, as the Reds last season tended to keep a rather conservative defensive line so that the likes of Warland and Ansell weren’t exploited by the pace of opposition attackers.
Add to the mix that United have recently signed Dutch veteran Bart Vriends, who projects well as a sweeper to clean up behind the line, and it makes a lot of sense that Delbridge could slot in quite nicely next to Vriends at the heart of defence.
Comparing Delbridge to outgoing United starter Nick Ansell highlights the improvements he would bring to the side.
Defensively, Delbridge is the much better player. He not only has the better cumulative stats, but his percentages – which highlight how efficient a player is in a given scenario, are also superior.
However, what Adelaide would not see is as much confidence on the ball.
Delbridge struggles with short to medium range passes, with a very low passing accuracy rate, as well as number of passes per 90.
This is somewhere that Nick Ansell was always reliable in – he rarely panicked on the ball and could play the simple passes well.
Instead, Delbridge prefers to play long, looking to break the lines. This is very similar to Bart Vriends, who is more than capable of playing the short pass, but prefers to play direct and get the ball forward quicker.
So whilst a Delbridge-Vriends pairing could be quality defensively, in possession the Reds could struggle playing out from the back, relying instead on the midfielders and wingers to find space and win duels directly with their markers on direct passes.
The biggest issue with Delbridge though, is that because of the way the Korean season is structured, his contract doesn’t expire until December.
With the limited number of centre backs on Adelaide’s squad list (there’s two, count them), it seems unlikely the club would be willing to brave it out for a few months to start the season and pray neither Vriends or Kikianis pick up an injury.
Trent Sainsbury
A centre back who would be immediately available is Trent Sainsbury.
Coming off contract with Al-Wakrah in Qatar, the former Socceroo is a free agent and will be looking for somewhere to settle into the twilight years of his career.
Qatari league stats are difficult to come by, but his performances with KV Kortrijk in the Belgian first division in 2021/22 show that he hasn’t lost his touch just yet.
He was at least average – compared to other Belgian league defenders – in nearly every defensive metric that season.
One that particularly stands out is his 6.98 ball recoveries per 90. Recoveries are classified by Opta (FotMob’s data supplier) as when a player wins the ball where neither team has possession.
Essentially, Sainsbury was incredibly effective at cleaning things up and keeping possession of the ball in those contested areas.
By contrast, Delbridge managed 5.37 per 90 in 2023, and currently has only 3.43 in the current season, and Ansell only had 2.79 per 90 in the last A-League Men’s season.
One big red flag though, is his tackling stats.
As highlighted in the analysis of Bart Vriends, having a lower number of tackles per 90 isn’t an immediate issue. But for Sainsbury, he doesn’t have a particularly high tackle win rate either.
Both of the tackling stats are higher than Ansell’s last season, but they do highlight a slight deficiency in his game.
Sainsbury is also, like Delbridge, not the greatest ball-playing centre back.
His long ball accuracy is commendable, and suggests he is able to play the ball direct and into space where his teammates can easily win possession, but his intermediate passing stats are lacklustre.
When playing for the Socceroos, he was very good with shorter passing though, so it could be a system issue rather than an indictment on his quality.
There’s also the question as to wages. Presumably, Qatari teams offer greater wages than an A-League Men side could afford, which could make this move difficult.
On the other hand, he has played for dutch sides PEC Zwolle and current United technical director Ernest Faber’s former side PSV, so perhaps those links could come into play.
Dylan Ryan
One player who is available, likely affordable, and a fair bit younger than the previous two suggestions, is Dylan Ryan.
The 24 year-old former Victory defender is currently plying his trade in NPL NSW with Wollongong Wolves, after a short stint in the Netherlands saw him unable to stamp his mark in Europe.
Ryan started his professional career with the youth side of Dutch club Willem II, before heading to the Victory in 2020/21, where he was a regular starter.
His time in Australia showed the quality he has to offer.
He was above average in all but two defensive metrics that season, was formidable in the air and strong in the tackle.
He was also an attacking threat, insofar as he put up decent xG numbers for a centre back.
Interestingly, the majority of his base stats actually improved in his last season in the Netherlands in 2022/23.
His tackling win rate improved from 78.6 per cent to 87.5 per cent, as did the number of tackles he won per 90.
However, he was less dominant in the air – his aerial duel win rate decreasing almost 10 per cent, and his passing still showed no sign of improvement.
Still, to be able to nab a young defender who, in his last A-League Men’s season, was in the 80th percentile or higher in the majority of defensive stats, would be an absolute steal for United.
Ryan also comes with the added benefit of positional flexibility; currently being used at left back by Wollongong.
Adelaide’s defensive struggles last season weren’t solely caused by the centre backs, with the full back situation also precarious.
Ryan Kitto did not look anywhere close to in form, and Bovalina was the only right back – among Panashe Madanha, Javi Lopez and Harry Van der Saag – to actually put in some decent performances.
Having someone who can fill a couple of holes will be key for United, whose squad list is already starting to reach its limit.
With Ryan likely available for the upcoming season should an A-League Men club come calling, it is a perfect opportunity for the Reds to pick up someone with plenty of game time already at such a young age, and with a proven track record of being a decent defender at this level.
Carl Jenkinson
Speaking of players with positional flexibility, Carl Jenkinson was released by the Newcastle Jets this off-season after a particularly poor campaign in the Hunter Valley.
There is no denying Jenkinson was a quality footballer at his peak, playing regularly for Arsenal and even showing some strong signs for City in his first A-League Men season.
Even in 2022/23 Jenkinson was at least somewhat serviceable. He struggled in the air; something that was never his strongest attribute, but was an above average ball winner for Newcastle.
But last season was a nightmare for the veteran English defender.
He was benched early on after a couple of nightmare performances, and then sat out most of the season with injury.
Jenkinson can play as a centre back or full back, used right across the line in the 2022/23 season for the Jets.
His stats in that period were okay-ish, certainly not living up to the hype he had built the season before.
He’s an above average tackler, and even last season had a respectable win rate, but everything else is lacking, especially for a fullback.
He struggles carrying the ball, with a low dribble success rate, and his passing isn’t anything to write home about.
In their cup match against Blacktown City, Adelaide experimented with a back three consisting of Ryan Kitto, Panagiotis Kikianis and Isaias.
It’s not beyond reason that Jenkinson could fill a role as one of the wider players in the back three, at least as a depth option behind the defensive starters of Vriends and Kikianis.
His profile would arguably suit it – he doesn’t have to be as mobile as a fullback, and can pivot around the other two defenders to step into the midfield and win balls back – as his recoveries per 90 suggest he has a tendency to do.
A big sticking point is that Jenkinson would fill a visa spot, and it’s arguably the wrong move to use these signings as purely depth pieces (and Adelaide already have two visa depth options on their roster in Ryan Tunnicliffe and Javi Lopez).
It’s not a signing that would necessarily make total sense, or even be good, but he’s a free agent and familiar with the league, which is why we’re calling it “reasonable”.
Stefan Nigro
While we’re on the topic of depth players, Stefan Nigro has recently become a free agent after his contract with Melbourne Victory expired.
Nigro is an A-League Men veteran at this point, despite being only 27 years old.
Last season he was little more than a bench player for the Victory, making a paltry eight appearances in the league; as it seemed Tony Popovic preferred Connor Chapman as the full back rotation option when Geria and Traore weren’t available.
Back in 2022/23, though, Nigro was a capable rotation piece for the Victory, and was pretty solid in defensive transition.
He was rarely dribbled past, recovered the ball well and was exceptional at winning it back in the final third, placing in the 79th percentile or higher for all three stats.
Nigro is also a player who looks comfortable on the ball, rarely being dispossessed and more than happy to open himself up to receive the ball in build up.
But, with his back to goal, Nigro is vulnerable to passive defending, lacking the tenacity to step into tackles effectively.
His poor tackle win rate and cumulative tackles per 90 highlight this deficiency, and suggest he’s best used when the game opens up and you need someone to work up and down the wing in transition.
This would mean he’s not a great fit for Adelaide if they persist with the back three, and he’s not an adept enough attacking threat to be used in their hyper-aggressive wingback roles either.
However, while he might not represent a clear upgrade over the options Adelaide already have, his ability to play both left and right back, as well as his experience at this level, make him a more than serviceable depth piece for a very thin Adelaide defensive unit.