Verteidigungsmonster - A look at tom Krauss and what he can add to luton town
Tom Krauss (Number 6) and teammates while playing for Germany
Luton Town have been making waves in the transfer market, first securing Liam Walsh on a free transfer and then splashing out on Mark McGuinness with a 'substantial' fee. The Hatters have now turned their attention to Germany, signing ex-Mainz 05 midfielder Tom Krauß.
According to reports from the German outlet Burstadter Zeitung, the 23-year-old Krauß flew to England on Monday to hold talks with Luton. Adding fuel to the speculation, Krauß was notably absent from Mainz’s training session on Tuesday morning. And today he signed for Luton Town!
Krauß only joined Mainz last year for a fee of €5 million, but with Luton’s ambitions being promotion, this signing could be another crucial step in strengthening our squad.
So who is Tom Krauß?
Tom Krauß is a defensive midfielder who has honed his craft entirely in Germany, featuring prominently in both the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2. Over the past two seasons, he has established himself as a mainstay in the Bundesliga, making 62 appearances for Mainz and Schalke. What stands out about Krauß is his remarkable durability, having missed just one league game in the last two seasons - a quality that has been lacking for the Hatters in recent years.
The title hints at the nickname ‘Verteidigungsmonster’, which translates to ‘defensive monster’ - a fitting description for Tom Krauß. As shown below, he ranks in the 93rd percentile or above in 9 out of 16 defensive criteria, a testament to his dominance in this area. While his ranking in the 65th percentile for errors may seem modest, it’s worth noting that he makes no errors per 90 minutes, an achievement not to be overlooked. Courtesy of Wyscout, Krauß also boasts the highest successful defensive actions per 90 minutes compared to other central midfielders in the Bundesliga in both the 2023/24 and 2022/23 seasons. Given these stats, it’s clear that Krauß more than lives up my description of him as a ‘defensive monster’.
Graph detailing Tom Krauß's defensive stats, stats courtesy of FBREF
Of course, like any player, Krauß has areas where he could improve, particularly when it comes to possession. During the 2023/24 season, his pass completion rate was 74.7%, placing him in the 32nd percentile. This figure is largely skewed by his long passing (passing over 30 yards), which has an accuracy of just 45.9% (14th percentile). However, it’s not all negative - his medium pass completion rate (passes between 15 and 30 yards) stands at 81.6%, while his short pass completion (for passes between 5 and 15 yards) is a respectable 83.6%. Despite his weaker areas on the ball, it's key to remember these stats were compared against other centre midfielders from the Bundesliga which is an elite level, top five league in the world.
In summary, Tom Krauß is a highly capable defensive midfielder with a few areas to refine, but his exceptional defensive skills are what we are signing him for.
A firsthand account of Tom Krauß
Reading the stats is all well and good, but you also need a watch a player to gauge their style and how good they are. To do this, I reached out to Die Hinterhofsänger, a Mainz 05 podcast to seek their opinion on the player - here’s what they had to say
“He's in the top 10 of most expensive players that Mainz acquired. After being transferred from Leipzig, hopes were high, that Tom would be able to stabilise the centre of our game. Also that he could improve his game with the ball, as he previously only had the reputation as a fighter who gives everything, but does not have so much skill in controlling the ball itself. You could see he was trying to up his game in this regard, but struggled to find good solutions in the passing game. Under pressure he struggled a lot.
In the other aspects he did a good job, like mentality, interceptions and clearances. His defensive actions were always clean and he was a good sub for us having the occasional shot from just outside the box. I can clearly remember his last second screamer equalising against Bochum in added time which send the stadium to stratosphere.
If he stays with his core strengths at #6, being a sweeper in defensive midfield he'll do a good job for you. If you as fans give him love, he'll pay it back a thousand times on the field with his fighting mentality.”
WHERE DOES Krauß FIT?
Unless we switch to a different system, I see him taking on the more 'defensive' role in our two-man midfield. His presence could allow us to get the best out of players like Baptiste and Clark, as they would have fewer defensive duties and could focus on showcasing their skills on the ball.
If we transitioned to a system like 4-2-3-1, I could envision Nakamba and him forming a formidable screen in front of the back line. However, sticking with our current 3-4-3 formation would likely create an interesting dilemma - one where it's a choice between him or Nakamba, but not both in my view.
As we saw in the Burnley game, our midfield was often bypassed, but with someone like Krauss that simply wouldn’t happen as frequently with him in the side.