Domonik Szoboszlai - Player profile & analysis. A thread

GENERAL:

- Height: 6”2
- Position: LM, CM, AM
- Date of birth/Age: Oct 25, 2000 (19)
- Market Value: £13.5M

POSITION:

- Left sided central midfielder in a 4-3-3 or 5-3-2
- Relatively high and wide for a centre-mid, almost always tried to recieve further up the pitch and in the half-spaces

ATTACK:

Szoboszlai displays a top-level sense of movement and understanding of space. He constantly scans to find pockets in the half-spaces, and aggressively moves into space to offer an option between the lines for his teammates

Even as a left sided #8 he found space in the box easily. Late runs into the area and supporting runs to the edge of the box meant lots of shooting opportunities. He also displayed good use of blind sided runs to find space in and around the area

Ball-control wise, his first touch was generally consistent, but not flawless. He could recieve under pressure and on the half-turn well, but if the pass had a lot of pace on it whilst he received back-to-goal, I noticed it could bounce off his foot and out of his control.

He has creativity in not just his pass selection but in his choice of passing technique. Clipped through balls, outside-the-foot "stabs", backheels, flicks etc. They were all common in his game, meaning passes that would otherwise not have been possible, could be played.

He uses disguise well; this opens up angles for passing lanes which would otherwise be marked. He'd occasionally disguise his touch if the ball was coming across his body, feinting opening his body up, but instead shifting the ball in the opposite direction. (see Toni Kroos)

Szoboszlai also excels at combinations, often playing first time passes and one-twos to change the tempo of attacks. generally, he seemed to prefer playing in smaller areas, connecting the dots and acting as a link player.

Decision making was convincing for the most part. He sometimes didn't allow runners to get into advanced enough positions before releasing through balls though. His pass selection was quite aggressive, but the accuracy and quality of his passing meant he did not suffer from this.

At 6'3, Szoboszlai is naturally slightly "loose" when dribbling, so in pure 1v1 situations he wasn't particularly incredible. But generally, even when under pressure, he could manoeuvre through opposition players well, and would expertly evade pressure when needed.

His pace was good enough to carry the ball when necessary, but he isn't lightning fast over shorter distances. Also, his fitness levels meant he could maintain his level of mobility over a 90 minute game to a adequate level.

His striking technique of the ball in general was effective, and it's unsurprising that he's on all the set-pieces for Salzburg. Can generate pace, dip and curve simultaneously and shows this in his set pieces and long-range shooting.

DEFENSE:

He works hard in defence to close down players who are close to the touchline and cut their options to the centre. As a box defender he lost concentration the few times he was there, he needs to scan for loose attackers in the area more often before crosses enter.

CONCLUSIONS:

- It's a matter of time before he's ready for a top 5 league
- His technique and movement mean he'll hopefully develop into a 15+ G/A player from midfield
- His skill-set means he can likely learn to play in more positions that he is presently

SUMMARY:

- Great understanding of space and able to find pockets in danger zones
- Athletic enough to compete in a bigger league
- Strikes the ball with conviction, and can use a variety of techniques when shooting
- Passes, short and long with precision
- Top combination player

Thanks for reading