Eight minutes before the team lines landed on social media, Heart of Midlothian announced the signing of Malachi Boateng.

He has signed a three-year deal becoming the club's eighth summer signing with Steven Naismith describing him as "a strong, athletic, ball-winning and ball-playing midfielder."

James Cairney looks at Boateng's path to Tynecastle Park and what Hearts fans can expect from him.

Along came the Spiders…

Hearts’ latest recruit is already well accustomed to Scottish football, so the midfielder’s bedding-in time should be fairly brief. He spent last season at Dens Park helping Dundee clinch a top-six spot, but before that the 22-year-old shone during a loan stint at Queen’s Park.

Usually deployed as a central midfielder in a 4-2-3-1 shape, it soon became clear that Boateng was operating at a higher level than most of his contemporaries in Scottish football’s second tier. The on-loan Crystal Palace player was something of an all-rounder, quickly cementing his status as a first-team regular and playing a huge role as the Spiders mounted an unlikely title charge that faltered at the final hurdle.

Come the end of the season, Boateng was a worthy inclusion in the Championship’s team of the season. The radar below shows how Boateng compared to other central midfielders in the league during the 2022/23 campaign, and the results speak for themselves.

The spokes on the above radar give us a good indication of a player’s overall skill-set. On-ball value (OBV) is an amalgamation of a few different statistics that provide an overall score, and Boateng’s OBV – both overall and in separate categories – is relatively high. His overall OBV, passing OBV and defensive OBV were all above average, while he is in the 77th percentile for dribbling OBV. Boateng won an impressive amount of fouls at the Spiders and was exceptional in 1v1 defensive duels, rarely being dribbled past. 

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What this all tells us is that Boateng is something of an all-rounder. He performed above the league average in every single category bar one (turnovers) during his time at Queen’s Park, with his off-the-ball work probably his strongest attribute. Last summer, it was clear that Boateng was ready for a new challenge at a higher level – and that’s exactly what he got at Dens Park.

Development at Dundee

The Crystal Palace player returned to Scotland the following season, but this time he would be plying his trade in the Premiership at newly-promoted Dundee. Tony Docherty’s side enjoyed a fine return to the top flight, sealing a top-six place, and Boateng played a big role before slipping down the pecking order towards the end of the season.

The radar above shows how Boateng fared in his debut Premiership campaign (red) compared to the league average for central midfielders (blue) and, at first glance, there really isn’t all that much to write home about. In most categories, the 22-year-old is below the average for players in his position. His overall OBV is also underwhelming, and that remains the case when we break it down into further categories.

Boateng’s passing and dribbling stats don’t make for especially encouraging reading, and his numbers suggest a degree of passivity out of possession. There is one area where he excels though – Boateng commits very few turnovers per 90 minutes played – and he is not easily dribbled past. 

Data can only tell you so much, though, and the good old-fashioned eye test sheds more light on the situation. As with most things in life, context is key here. It’s important to note that Boateng was playing in a different system than he was at Queen’s Park, and therefore his statistical output is inevitably going to change. The 22-year-old often found himself playing in the No.6 position in a 3-5-2, where Dundee’s set-up meant he wasn’t called into action as much as he perhaps would have liked. On other occasions, he would fulfil the right central midfield role, but again we need to place his performances in the context of the tactical system he was operating within.

When playing as the right central midfielder, Boateng often found himself covering the space behind the right wing-back as his team-mate pushed forward in support, thus giving himself fewer opportunities to get involved during attacking phases of play. Also, Dundee’s tactical approach relies on getting the ball up to the forwards quickly, often resulting in the midfield shelling hopeful balls forward at the cost of losing some accuracy. Within this context, there is perhaps more than meets the eye to Boateng’s passing stats. 

Below is a typical example. The Dundee and St Mirren midfields are playing a game of head tennis, and Boateng is lurking in the middle, waiting for the ball to fall his way.

It soon does, and Boateng springs into action. The midfielder reacts quickest, stretching to pluck the ball the loose ball out of the air.

He has two players around him, and quickly hoofs it forward.

In this instance, Boateng’s team-mate gets the ball under control, and now Dundee can attack.

But, more often than not, such long balls forward were usually snuffed out – and Boateng’s passing stats suffered as a result.

It’s important to highlight this as this was a regular occurrence for Boateng at Dens Park, but he is unlikely to run into the same difficulties in Gorgie. Steven Naismith’s side tend to exert a lot more control in their games than Dundee, and hopeful punts forward are a rarity. Dundee’s system relies heavily on how the team reacts during attacking transitions, whereas at Hearts the focus is primarily placed on the team’s work in possession. It is a more patient and measured approach – and we can expect Boateng’s statistical output to improve as a result.

Role at Hearts?

Looking at Boateng’s skill-set, one has to imagine that the 22-year-old has been brought in to provide some more depth and competition for Beni Baningime at the No.6 position. There is no one else quite like the former Everton man currently on the books at Tynecastle and although Boateng is probably the closest thing to a like-for-like replacement, he still has a ways to go before he is producing what Baningime does on a weekly basis.

The radar above uses a different set of metrics to our earlier radars, but these categories give us a good indication of a midfielder’s all-round play. The red represents Boateng and the blue shows Baningime’s output from last season and, as we can see, Baningime has his new team-mate beat in just about every metric.

The duo’s shapes aren’t entirely dissimilar, suggesting a similar profile of player, but Boateng is still significantly trailing Baningime in key passing metrics. Creatively, there isn’t much between the two players – neither are hitting a lot of defence-splitting passes – and Baningime is a lot more active off the ball, attempting more presses and tackles per 90 minutes played (again, though, this is likely a tactical issue). Crucially, though, both commit very few turnovers per game, indicating that Boateng can be the safe pair of hands at the base of midfield that Hearts’ system demands.

In possession, then, there is reason to believe that Boateng can ably deputise for Baningime – but what about off the ball? A key aspect of the No.6 role at Hearts is the ability to counter-press and snuff out opposition counter-attacks before they can get going. Baningime is one of the most effective players in the Premiership in this sense, regularly winning the ball back high up the park. It’s something that Boateng didn’t do too much at Dundee – but that’s not to say he is incapable of doing so.

Take a look at the example below from Dundee’s trip to Easter Road last season. Dundee are on the attack as the ball is shifted into the centre-forward’s feet, with Boateng dutifully sitting at the base of midfield. There’s a lot of space in front of him, and so he jogs forward to occupy it.

The pass is slack, though, and Joe Newell is able to intercept.

The Hibs midfielder gets back on his feet and spins on the spot before playing the ball forward to a team-mate. Note that Boateng isn’t even in the frame here.

Boateng comes barreling in, extending his leg to win the ball back and work it inside to a team-mate – and now Dundee are on the attack again, and with plenty of men forward.

It’s not the most spectacular or exciting bit of play you’ll ever see, but it’s exactly the sort of thing Baningime does on a regular basis and its importance cannot be understated. Hearts tend to control possession and play the game on their terms, and snuffing out opposition counters allows them to do just that. Boateng has shown he is capable of doing so; we just need to see it a little more regularly.

Boateng has some work to do if he is to fill Baningime’s not-insubstantial boots, and will need a few games at No.6 to see if he is able to adapt his game accordingly. But in terms of his current statistical profile, Boateng has more in common with one of Naismith’s first signings as Hearts boss.

Calem Nieuwenhof is a traditional No.8; someone who is a bit of an all-rounder without being truly exceptional at anything in particular. He can pass, he can shoot, he can dribble and he can defend, but the Aussie doesn’t play a specialist role like Baningime or Yan Dhanda do in their respective positions.

Take a look at the above radar comparing Boateng (red) and Nieuwenhof (blue). Nieuwenhof has Boateng beat in most categories but their overall shapes are very similar. We should expect Nieuwenhof’s numbers to be better as he was playing in a superior team, but it is encouraging to see Boateng performing reasonably well when asked to get further forward.

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Boateng is capable of threading the needle when he has to, but the truth is that this isn’t really his game. He isn’t a playmaker-type constantly looking to split the defence and open up the opposition, but he does have an eye for a pass in the final third.

Take a look at the example below from a Dundee v Rangers game last season. The game ended in a 5-0 drubbing for the Tayside club, but there were still individual moments of quality sprinkled throughout the defeat. At one point, Amadou Bakayoko advanced up the right wing before cutting the ball back to Boateng.

The 22-year-old has players all around him, but he’s spotted Bakayoko’s well-timed run. He releases it first time and although it doesn’t result in a goal, Bakayoko is able to sting Jack Butland’s palms with a decent attempt from a narrow-angle.

What kind of player can Hearts fans expect to see? Most likely Boateng will be somewhere in the middle of Baningime and Nieuwenhof, and this is exactly what Naismith needs. The structure of the three-man midfield often changes – sometimes it’s a No.6 with two central midfielders in front of them, sometimes it’s a central midfield pairing behind a No.10 – and Boateng’s versatility would seem to indicate that he can play in either system.

In a nutshell: Boateng has been playing like Nieuwenhof, but he has the potential to be Baningime. Time will tell if he is up to the challenge, but the early indications are promising indeed.