BIO
Date of Birth / Age: 11/04/05 / 18yo
Nationality: English
Team: Brighton and Hove Albion
Position: CM/LB/RB/RM/AM
Height: 182cm / 5'11.5"
General statistics for the 2023/24 season thus far - transfermarkt.co.uk
Positional heatmap for the 2023/24 Premier League season thus far - sofascore.com
Born and raised in Brighton, Hinshelwood has spent his entire footballing life playing for his hometown club, joining the newly revamped academy age 7. His father Adam Hinshelwood also represented the Seagulls in the 00s and is now manager of local non-league side Worthing; his uncles Martin (current Brighton and Hove Albion scout) and Danny were also professional footballers. Football runs through Jack's veins and this is shown through how rapidly he has risen through the ranks at Brighton, entering training with the first team not long after he made his first appearance for the u18s.
Having been thrown into the deep end for the senior team, making his first 2 starts away at Aston Villa and AEK Athens respectively, both tough places to go, Hinshelwood has adapted better than anyone could've ever expected, boasting versatility and maturity beyond his years.
PHYSICAL TRAITS
Bigger than you'd assume but yet to fill out his frame given his age
Though at first glance Hinshelwood appears short and slight, the 18 year old is almost 6ft tall with potential to grow further. A hunched posture and proportionally short legs makes him seem shorter than he is, in actuality he has the desired height to survive physically in midfield or in defence.
As to be expected from an 18 year old, Hinshelwood has not yet packed much muscle onto his frame and is still developing physically, something that needs to be taken into account when observing him in physical duels.
Once developed fully, expect him to compete physically - his robust and stockier frame lends itself to being tough and hard to move.
Holds his own athletically versus Premier League opposition
While it would be disingenuous to label Hinshelwood as being quick, he certainly has enough acceleration and movement ability to keep up with most in the Premier League, notorious for harbouring the sports best athletes.
Similarly, he does not seem to have much spring in his jumps, yet at the same time seems to have just enough to compete with Premier League competition. He is above average athletically even though his aesthetics wouldn't point to that being the case.
Obviously because of his shorter legs Hinshelwood doesn't have the long strides that aid in eating up ground over longer distances. This is not something that seems to affect him as much as you'd assume it would, he can maintain consistent pace covering large distances and chase down players. Deceptive.
His strength and contact balance is already good enough and will only improve as he develops, the same goes for his lateral movement/agility.
Flexible and dexterous legs, lacks the length to impact larger zones
The way his legs are built is rather unique. Though they lack the length of someone like Pedri they have similar qualities: bendy and malleable, allowing him to ride tackles as well as engage in tackles from awkward angles.
Because of the lack of leg length, Hinshelwood cannot block large areas of space and clog passing lanes by simply existing like these freakish midfielders that seem to keep spawning in (think Rice, Onana, Baleba, even Caicedo).
Having shorter legs gives him hips that are closer to the ground / lower centre of gravity - a trait often found in the best fullbacks, perhaps why he was able to adapt to well to that position.
IN POSSESSION
Technically security is evident, clear confidence in his on-ball abilities
Hinshelwood has a lovely touch of the ball, he is always in control when the ball is at his feet, top quality ball manipulation. He seldom loses possession needlessly, always a safe option to pass to.
The weight of his passes is nearly always correct, allowing for the recipient to receive in the stride and play quickly, vital for a side that plays in intricate sequences like Brighton. There is great care shown in possession by Hinshelwood, this is something that comes natural to him.
Hinshelwood deals with tricky balls into him easily, his chest control in particular stands out, again making him a very safe option in possession.
This technical security combined with his field vision and confidence in possession allows Hinshelwood to pull off an array of impressive first time passes and flicks that catch the opposition off guard.
Not heavily involved in build up but shows great composure and vision at all times
Currently, De Zerbi has begun to stray from his usual 4-2 build up structure, instead opting to build from a 3-1 or a 3-2 (depending on the opposition), bringing the left back into the back 3 and pushing Hinshelwood up, either to hold width on the right or join the midfield. Thus, Hinshelwood currently does not have many build up responsibilities and is used more as an outlet once the press has been baited.
Despite not often having to play through the press, when he is faced with pressure he deals with it calmly, never rushing, allowing the passing lanes to develop and find the open man.
His field vision is genuinely top quality, he is always alert and aware of both his teammates and the oppositions positioning. This proves to me that Hinshelwood will not struggle at all should De Zerbi want to move him back into the double pivot once Lamptey and Veltman return, pressure will not phase him at all.
Hinshelwood, by all accounts, is perennially calm and composed, something that shows up on the pitch in how he handles pressure but also in how he was able to come into a quality side, playing in difficult situations in an unfamiliar position, aged only 18. There is a reason he has become one of De Zerbi's favourites, his mentality and maturity is top.
Line-breaking capacity is still developing, reads the game well enough to consistently progress play but doesn't yet have an expansive passing range
Only 2.41 progressive passes per 90, quite low especially considering Brighton's system essentially farms passing metrics.
Naturally Hinshelwood wants to be ahead of the ball, involved in the midfield and final third, as opposed to turning and facing the entire pitch - throughout his career I doubt he'll ever be a progressive passing machine because of this but still he will pull his weight if required.
The weighting and timing of his longer passes is usually good and again shows great care for the recipient of the pass, just need to see these passes pulled out slightly more often.
Of course there is more variance with long passing but that's to be expected, you're not going to land 100% of them; the idea of the pass is far more important and Hinshelwood usually has the correct idea.
Hinshelwood has the vision and technique to possess and full passing range, being able to affect every area of the pitch, so while he may not currently be the most expressive passer this is an area that I can see him rapidly developing in, especially in the final third.
Learning from Pascal Gross as well as De Zerbi will help him in this area, particularly when it comes to unlocking deep blocks with penetrative passing.
Seldom carries the ball, especially in senior football
Currently, carrying is not something Hinshelwood seems to be comfortable with. In youth football he was more willing to dribble through the lines but since he's made the step up to senior football he has played it far more safe for good reason - it's harder to carry versus better athletes without having a deep bag of tricks or top quality running power to fall back on.
His body and ball manipulation allows him to fake opposition players out and get past them, something he uses to beat the press, though he usually looks to release the ball right after - he doesn't want to carry over long distances.
Rides tackles well, aforementioned dexterous legs coming in to play here.
While carrying, Hinshelwood protects the ball well and is rarely dispossessed. He is not much of a risk taker, everything is simple to ensure he maintains possession. This is something that limits how impactful his ball carrying can be as there is an inherent risk involved with dribbling that you must embrace, not hide from.
This is not an area that you'd assume would develop into a big part of his game in the future, it's just not something he has in him.
Excellent off the ball movement, always picking up pockets of space in the opposition's third
His movement, while understated and subtle, is truly outstanding. At times it seems he's invisible to the opposition with how often he picks up dangerous positions unmarked.
Appears in a multitude of goal scoring opportunities due to going unnoticed in the box, lurking into space and latching on to the end of crosses.
The most important part of Hinshelwood's off the ball movement is his timing. He always understands the correct time to move out of someone's shadow to receive a pass between the lines or when to make his run into the box to ensure he arrives as the ball arrives.
Because of his movement ability, Hinshelwood will consistently be a goal threat throughout his career, he has the box movement of a veteran striker, maybe Glenn Murray has given him a couple lessons.
Shockingly productive in front of goal when compared to other fullbacks, aided by his movement and positioning
1.49 shots per 90 (98th percentile for fullbacks), 0.21 NPxG per 90 (99th percentile) - amazing production for any fullback, let alone an 18 year old who has been forced into the position due to injuries.
Hinshelwood consistently takes shots from good areas due to that top quality movement. These are high quality chances that he is able to manufacture by simply drifting into the box at the right time, it is not normal.
He is not yet as composed in front of goal as you'd like but that is a minor complaint, he is still getting the job done, and having strikeresque composure in the box is not something you could ever demand of him at this stage of his career.
His ball striking technique is fundamentally sound and refined, allowing him to generate more power than you'd expect from someone built like him. Even Vicario, arguably the best goalkeeper in the league this season, was caught off guard with the venom Hinshelwood can generate with his strikes as the ball flew right over his head and into the back of the net.
One-footedness does rear it's head in passing situations
One thing to note is that Hinshelwood really only uses his right foot when passing, thus closing himself off to certain angles.
This is most noticeable when he is coming back towards his own goal down the right hand side of the pitch as he cannot pass the ball back into midfield without completely shifting his body first, also resulting in a pass that spins away from the recipient in midfield as opposed to arriving in stride.
His left foot needs to develop should he move back in to midfield where you need all possible angles to be available. With this sort of angle bias you don't really want Hinshelwood playing deeper in midfield, though I guess you wouldn't want him there regardless given his impact in the final third.
OUT OF POSSESSION
Reads the opposition like a book, making him a competent presser as well as an interception machine
Exceptional field vision allows Hinshelwood to know where the passing lanes are and how to block them, making him difficult to play around when under pressure.
His uncanny reading of the game allows him to see passes before they manifest, again allowing him to clog up passing lanes. While he lacks the long leg reach usually needed to rack up interceptions, his footballing mind overcomes this.
The Brighton system out of possession is aggressive and brave, asking everyone to go man-to-man often and press extremely high. Hinshelwood manages to balance this system with his natural inclination to be passive and not expose space behind him masterfully for someone so young and inexperienced.
Competent jockeying in wide areas even against the division's top wingers
Hinshelwood, much like Kaishu Sano, is noticeably bouncy when jockeying, hopping on his toes in order to spring laterally whenever the opposition makes a move.
While he does occasionally cross his feet or join them together, the majority of the time he keeps a solid base and quick feet, allowing him to follow the opposition at a moments notice no matter how much they try to twist and turn.
His body positioning can get slightly awkward, folding his torso over his toes, making him unbalanced - something that should get cleaned up rather easily.
When in a 1v1 situation, Hinshelwood is rarely beat, though this is in part due to his passivity when jockeying. He doesn't want to commit to a challenge, instead hoping that being in the wingers way will be enough to deter them. While this means no one is ever leaving him in the dust, it does give opposition players the space to get a cross in uncontested.
These small flaws are all understandable and easily fixed. The fact of the matter is Hinshelwood is exceptional defending in wide areas considering he's an 18yo midfielder. He has gone up against Son, Martinelli, Bowen, Benrahma, and Sterling and has kept up with them, very impressive.
Not imposing in the tackle but his dexterous build allows for challenges from awkward angles, catches opposition players off guard at times
Much like his jockeying, Hinshelwood prefers to be passive when engaging so as to not be beat. Rarely ever will you see him fully committing to a challenge.
His unique legs allow him to stretch out at odd angles to poke the ball away when opposition players don't expect it, his flexibility is a real advantage here.
Because he opts to poke the ball away as opposed to win it with conviction, opposition players can fight through these tackles and beat him.
In the odd occasion that Hinshelwood does chose to engage physically and go shoulder-to-shoulder with someone he looks much more convincing because of the innate leverage advantage that comes with having a lower centre of gravity. As he fills out and develops more expect him to engage in tackles with more spite and win the ball in a more convincing manner, will help learning under someone like Veltman too.
Sniffs out danger, defends the back post admirably
Another result of his exceptional reading of the game, Hinshelwood is always where he needs to be defending the back post.
His composure aids him in dealing with awkward bouncing balls that can often be threatening for defenders, chests the ball back to the keeper often in an attempt to replicate Lewis Dunk.
Mentally he is ahead of the game and always alert, even when defending deep which can lead some to switch off. Having great off the ball movement himself he is most likely more aware of people lurking into the box in a similar manner.
More than holds his own aerially, impactful in both boxes
50% aerial win rate, good enough, especially given his age and inexperience.
When he heads the ball he makes sure to head it with power and placement, guiding it far away from danger and into a space where a teammate can deal with it. His goal vs Brentford this season is the best example of the sort of power he's able to generate from his headers.
On set pieces, particularly corners, you'll often see Hinshelwood defending the front post and getting to the ball often. Maybe this is due to the inability to beat the first man that is seemingly plaguing all set piece takers in England but we'll give Hinshelwood the praise nonetheless.
He cannot be targeted by the opposition in the air - all you can really ask for from someone filling in an fullback.