Hector Bellerin says comparing his stats to the very best footballers is helping him make rapid strides.
The Spain Under-21 defender impressed in his first senior season, scoring two goals in 28 appearances and helping the Gunners lift the FA Cup.
Still only 20, Bellerin is always looking to improve his game by analysing his stats, but admits they are not always representative of his performances.
“Nowadays there’s a lot of numbers going around in football,” the right back told the Arsenal Weekly podcast. “People love to look at stats and see which player is better but sometimes stats are a bit unrealistic.
“For example when we beat Bayern at home, we had less possession than them but we ended up winning, so sometimes numbers are not as real as people think. But when it does come to your performance, you always want to have a look to see if you’ve run a lot or less than another game.
“You want to know why you did that because you always want to better yourself, especially in the Premier League. Football overall is getting much more physical now than it was before so it’s important that those numbers help you see where you are compared to where the best are.
“If you want to be with the best, you want to know what you can do to better yourself.”
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