Stoke City: Comparing Wouter Burger's stats to Laurent, Baker and Pearson | OneFootball

Stoke City have today completed the signing of highly-rated Dutch midfielder Wouter Burger.

The former Basel midfielder has joined the Potters for an undisclosed fee, penning a four-year deal. He has become City's 14th addition this window.

The club have eclipsed every other Championship side in terms of the number of new faces being brought in. Burger joins the likes of Ryan Mmaee, Ben Pearson, Ki-Jana Hoever, Andre Vidigal and Mehdi Leris, who have all made the switch to the Potteries.

Burger helped his side reach the semi-finals of the Europa Conference League last term, where they were knocked out by eventual runners-up Fiorentina.

Furthermore, he has played three times for Basel so far this term, with his last appearance in red and blue coming last Sunday where Burger assisted his side's only goal.

Burger can occupy a number of roles in the midfield, as he possesses admirable qualities both on and off the ball.

The Dutchman's key strengths are his eye for a pass, his pressing, and his awareness - he knows when to join the attack and arrive into the penalty area, and when to retreat and contribute defensively.

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Lewis Baker is yet to play so far this season, and the addition of Burger could see his minutes reduced significantly.

Last season, the Englishman was directly involved in more goals than the former Dutch U21 international (12), however, he was the club's designated penalty taker.

This is where Burger begins to look like the better option, as he completed more successful dribbles, key passes and tackles/interceptions per 90 minutes.

Furthermore, the newest Potters' recruit took slightly more shots per 90, registering 1.5.

Ben Pearson

Burger and Pearson vary slightly stylistically, but both provide a good defensive presence.

The latter only joined Stoke on a six-month loan in January. He impressed significantly and earned a permanent move to the Potteries. Pearson racked up over 1100 minutes and averaged 3.3 tackles/interceptions per 90. Despite his ability to join the attack, Burger managed slightly more, with 3.5.

The former Preston man does however, complete a higher percentage of his passes with an 84% record, as opposed to the former Basel man's 76%. This may be due to the type of pass being attempted, as Burger tends to eye a more audacious ball.

Pearson is known for his commanding nature in the middle of the park, and is often subject to a yellow card. Burger will provide much-needed cover in this area so that the burden of having to play week in, week out, is taken away.

Josh Laurent

Josh Laurent was another of last season's new recruits, joining permanently from Reading. He is arguably the most akin to Burger.

Both completed a similar percentage of their passes last term and got dribbled past equally. He is superior defensively, but Laurent completes slightly more of his dribbles (1.1 per 90) and got dispossessed fewer times on average (1 per 90).