For 3 weeks, the core of Italy’s remarkably a hit attacking sport plan on the fresh Below-20 Global Cup in Argentina may well be as it should be summarised as “just right issues occur when Cesare Casadei touches the ball within the field”.
It was once in particular merciless, then, {that a} Casadei contact in his personal penalty house proved their undoing within the 86th minute of the overall in opposition to Uruguay on Sunday. Recuperating to dam Alan Matturro’s goal-bound shot following a nook scramble, the Chelsea prospect inadvertently despatched the ball looping around the six-yard field onto the pinnacle of Luciano Rodriguez to attain the night time’s simplest target.
Simply as the most important to Uruguay profitable their first Below-20 Global Cup was once their good fortune at almost getting rid of Casadei’s touches of their field. Italy registered simply two shot makes an attempt in 102 mins of motion together with stoppage time, each from out of doors the penalty house, with their celebrity midfielder afforded no alternatives so as to add to his tournament-leading seven objectives.
Had been it now not for photographs that hit the crossbar in opposition to Nigeria and the submit in opposition to Colombia, Casadei may extremely have long past into that ultimate on 9 objectives — the similar quantity a undeniable Erling Haaland controlled on the earlier Below-20 Global Cup in 2019 (all 9 coming in one fit in opposition to Honduras).
Two of Casadei’s seven objectives have been emphatic consequences. 3 have been headers from corners: the primary coolly knocked down for himself to nod into an empty internet of their workforce opener in opposition to Brazil, the second one glanced in off the submit after contorting his frame in a break up 2nd to redirect a near-post flick within the ultimate workforce sport in opposition to the Dominican Republic, and the 3rd powered in on the again submit to lend a hand beat Colombia within the quarter-finals.
His different two showcased the type of confident completing elite golf equipment extra usually search for in strikers.
Overdue on in that 3-0 win over the Dominican Republic, he pounced on a wayward target kick at the left flank, dribbled against a back-pedalling defender within the field, were given him off stability with a handy guide a rough stepover and a shift of the ball to his left foot, and shot into the some distance nook.
The most efficient of the bunch got here early within the slender 2-1 defeat of South Korea within the semi-finals: opening his frame as he ran directly to Riccardo Turicchia’s low go in from the left, he met it simply throughout the penalty house, side-footing the ball prime, laborious and primary time together with his proper foot into the highest nook.
This sort of constant, polished and sundry target risk isn’t customary for a midfielder, however then Casadei isn’t an ordinary midfielder — a minimum of now not by means of fashionable requirements. If anything else, ultimate summer season’s 6ft 1in (185cm) signing from Inter Milan is a stylistic throwback to the tall, athletic, powerfully-built midfield goalscorers who loved their high seasons within the 2000s: the likes of Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and Michael Ballack.
It was once very suitable that, in a light-hearted interview with FIFA’s media channels for TikTok all through the event in Argentina, Casadei picked Lampard over a chain of different mythical midfielders — deviating from Chelsea’s document goalscorer simplest when Italy icon Andrea Pirlo was once discussed.
The important thing query now’s whether or not Casadei’s peculiar profile will lend a hand or impede the following level of his building.
Chelsea consider he’s 365 days and one just right mortgage (he spent the second one part of ultimate season at Championship strugglers Studying) clear of being able to compete for a spot of their first-team squad. They would love that mortgage to be someplace within the Premier League, however important hobby in him inside of England’s most sensible flight has now not but materialised.
Pep Guardiola bears some duty for that. His dominant Barcelona groups from 2008 to 2012 ushered in a brand new technology of ultra-sophisticated tactical techniques and bigger technical calls for than ever sooner than throughout all positions, however in particular so in midfield.
Within the fashionable sport, those that function in the course of the pitch are anticipated above all else to be comfy receiving the ball in deep positions, enjoying via or round force in tight areas and breaking the opposition strains with passing or dribbling — and this technical emphasis has trickled down smartly under Europe’s elite tier of golf equipment.
Casadei is rarely dangerous technically however, a minimum of at this early level of his occupation, he does now not excel at any of the ones issues.
He is most suitable to working as a No 8 who can also be granted the liberty to run ahead with out the ball, the place the phenomenal timing of his runs into the opposition penalty house, his talent to complete with both foot and his wisdom of easy methods to use his frame within the air have a knack of being decisive.
Chelsea have now not had a participant remotely like that since Lampard left in 2014, and a prolonged loss of target risk from midfield within the Kante-Jorginho-Kovacic technology has indisputably contributed to the staff’s broader attacking stagnation. New head trainer Mauricio Pochettino is also taking a look to construct a special form of midfield, and it will now not be stunning if he noticed in Casadei one of the crucial similar qualities that when made Dele Alli so efficient changing past due runs and headed probabilities for him at Tottenham Hotspur.
That most probably stays a way off, if it occurs in any respect.
Chelsea’s extra pressing problem is to discover a higher mortgage are compatible for Casadei this season than Studying proved to be en path to their relegation into the 3rd tier of English soccer (he was once at the profitable aspect simply as soon as in his 15 appearances, scoring one target). Preferably, the membership borrowing him would manage to pay for the 20-year-old an opportunity to do what he does best possible whilst additionally increasing his sport.
Casadei understandably has hobby from again in Italy, however Chelsea would a lot desire him to proceed his adaptation to English soccer. He inspired many at their Cobham coaching floor within the first part of ultimate season with how briefly he settled into his new setting and collected the language. Via all accounts, he’s a extremely unbiased, low-maintenance persona.
Even that mortgage spell is thought of as a good step — and the velocity at which he shook off any lingering unhappiness to polish on the Below-20 Global Cup, with Italy’s marketing campaign beginning two weeks after his ultimate look for Studying, was once in particular smartly gained at Chelsea.
The hope is that it persuades any other Premier League membership to provide a chance to a participant who, in spite of now not becoming the existing type of what a midfielder must be in 2023, has a collection of attributes that would make him an actual difference-maker in English soccer.
(Most sensible picture: Marcio Machado/Eurasia Recreation Photographs/Getty Photographs)
