Benfica have a number of strong prospects, of whom Ruben Dias gets the most attention.
Dias has struggled against top tier opposition, though, and may not be as good as is widely
assumed, so our pick is 6ft defensive midfielder Florentino.
Florentino is a screening midfielder, with consistently strong defensive numbers. He
makes 13.2 defensive actions per 90, sixth best of all the players we looked at, wins
69% of his 8.2 defensive duels per 90, and makes 5.3 interceptions per 90.
Alongside this defensive job, he keeps play ticking over: of his 54 passes per 90 on average,
almost half are lateral; when he does try to push the ball forwards, though, he makes
7.7 progressive passes at 85% accuracy and 6.4 passes into the final third at 88% accuracy.
He occasionally dwells on the ball too long and he’s not resistant to top-level pressing
yet. It remains easy to force him to play backwards, instead of dribbling or passing
forwards to break the press.
But that isn’t Florentino’s job: he’s there to protect. Playing ahead of Dias, he
offers cover for when the centre back pushes forwards; his positional awareness is good
and he has the athleticism to get back into position if Benfica are caught out.
He’s tenacious too, although his desire to win back the ball can occasionally leave
him out of position. That’s a temporary weakness, though. and working on his discipline
could quickly turn him into a better player.
Florentino probably has the highest ceiling of the players we’ve looked at and could
well turn into a top defensive midfielder for a top European side.
Sporting have two excellent young defensive midfielders, Idrissa Doumbia and our pick,
Wendel (Joe: pronounced “Wen-Dell”). He started his professional career at Fluminese
and was linked with Paris Saint-Germain before a move to Sporting. He’s been capped by
Brazil at U23 level and after a tricky start at Sporting, has become a crucial part of
their midfield. He fell out with the club last season after travelling to watch a Champions
League game without permission, and there are rumblings about off-field issues, but
he’s a fine player.
Wendel is more of a deep playmaker than a holding defensive midfielder, and can play
further up the pitch if required. Playing in a double pivot with Doumbia or on the left
of a midfield three, he has the role of progressing the ball into more dangerous positions, while
Doumbia does the dirty work.
Wendell sees a lot of the ball, with an average of 57 passes per 90, which he plays at 94%
accuracy. Twenty-four of these are lateral, but this is because Sporting use their full
backs to attack a lot in the areas as the attacking unit tend to cluster centrally.
He makes 8.4 final third passes at 87% accuracy, and 6.9 progressive passes at 80% accuracy,
both per 90.
Wendell also chips in defensively, winning 59% of his 5.6 defensive duels per 90 and
making 2.2 interceptions per 90. But this isn’t his primary role. Wendel keeps his
team moving – he’s very much a receive, pass, move kind of player who facilitates
Sporting moving up the pitch with his efficient use of the ball. He receives well under pressure,
and always looks to find space to offer an option again.
If a team has plenty of attacking options, he’s the kind of player who will make sure
they can retain possession until one of his more creative teammates can carve an opportunity.
In short, a very useful player to build a midfield around, who could probably play a
slightly more attacking role for a different side.
Left-footed inside forward Marcus Edwards was allowed to leave Tottenham Hotspur, but
his performances for Vitória Guimarães this season have really caught the eye and he may
well make a bigger move this summer. He has seven goals and five assists in just over
2000 minutes this season, at 0.25 goals per 90 and 0.19 assists per 90 – both of these
stats are outperforming his expected goals and assists per 90, though, which is worth
noting.
Edwards is a dynamic carrier of the ball, with 8.2 dribbles per 90 at 49% success and
2.6 progressive runs per 90 – that’s about one action per 90 less than Trincão, the
highly rated Braga winger who is off to Barcelona this summer. His low centre of gravity – he’s
listed at 5ft5 – means he can hold defenders off, and his quick feet and ability to cut
in off the flank afford him shooting opportunities.
He’s a good creative passer too. Edwards’ 2.1 deep completions per 90 is the fourth
best in the league of players we looked at. He’s excellent at stabbing short passes
through to on-running players, often carrying the ball in towards the goal at an angle then
sending the pass back across the angle of his run behind the defence. This dual threat
of shooting and passing makes Edwards tough to defend against – give him room and he
can shoot, close him down and you leave space behind for a through ball.
Edwards is an exciting young player, fun to watch, and capable of good attacking output,
even if his size might work against him in certain leagues.
Costa is not the young Portuguese ‘keeper getting league minutes at the moment – that’s
Luís Maximiano of Sporting, a 6ft3 stopper who has played 13 league games. But Maximiano
has conceded 14 goals from an xG of 12.8 with a fairly poor 71% save percentage, and looks
like he has work to do. Diogo Costa, on the other hand, has looked very assured in outings
for both the senior and reserve sides and has the makings of an excellent modern goalkeeper.
Standing 6ft1.5, Costa is short for a modern top level ‘keeper but looks assured aerially,
regularly getting good distance with his punches and being unafraid to throw himself into contests.
His anticipation of through passes is good and his technique looks reliable, gathering
the ball into his chest firmly and only very rarely not making a clean catch or take. He
has a tendency to swing his arms behind him prior to leaping, which could cause issues
if reaching for balls in the corner of the goal, but he gets good elevation for a shorter
‘keeper, and his reflex saves can be exceptional. If he has a weakness, it’s one-one-ones
or when the ball breaks close to his goal, although it’s hard to judge many of the
goals he has conceded as being missed opportunities to make a save.
Where Costa really excels, and why he’s a modern ‘keeper, is his distribution. With
8.5 progressive passes and 2.8 final third passes per 90, he gets the ball forwards well
– these stats are first and fourth for all Liga NOS keepers, not just ones we looked
at. He’s very capable of starting quick counter-attacks with lovely long throws or
arrowed kicks, but he rarely wastes possession, happy to play it short if the opportunity
isn’t on for a deeper clearance. He plays with a high starting position but does not
look flustered when pressured by opposition players and, while right footed, is also relatively
comfortable with the ball on his left.
Costa is a technically good ‘keeper with excellent reflexes and distribution. While
not as robust or tall as some, for teams that favour possession football and count the ‘keeper
as a key element in retaining possession and starting counter attacks, Costa would be an
excellent signing.
Lastly, and perhaps the player with the lowest ceiling on our list, is Toni Martínez. The
Spanish striker, who has represented La Rioja at youth levels, spent three years at West
Ham United without making a single appearance, but has nonetheless re-established himself
at FC Famalicão, as one of Liga NOS’ best striking prospects.
He’s scored eight non-penalty goals at an xG of 0.47 per 90, sixth of players aged 23
or younger in the league, but he’s put up significantly more minutes than any of those
with a better xG per 90. He’s second of the players we looked at for total shot volume,
11th for shots per 90, and he’s on target almost 50% of the time.
Martínez is predominantly right footed but can score with his left as well, and his finishing
is strong in one-on-ones and from acute angles. Despite having an oddly hunched running style,
he is fairly quick and his movement in the box is intelligent, which coupled with a good
positional sense makes him dangerous close in. He also excels in the air, winning almost
half of his 7.6 aerial duels per 90 despite being only 5ft11.
Martínez’s link-up play can be unpredictable on the floor, but for teams looking for a
striker to win the ball in the air, then spin off and break forwards for a strong penalty
box presence, he is worth considering.
He’s a hard working presser, too, and capable of scoring on the break carrying the ball;
all factors which make him attractive, particularly to managers employing a counter-attacking approach.