Leandro Barreiro
Introducing Leandro Barreiro, a rising football talent affiliated with Mainz 05. At 23 years old, the Luxembourg midfielder stands at 174cm / 5'7 tall, showcasing versatility in the centre of Mainz’s team. With a notable proficiency on the ball, Barreiro’s playing style, coupled with his Right footedness, presents an exciting prospect for those keen on emerging football talent. This scouting report delves into the key aspects of his game, shedding light on his strengths, potential, and areas of development.
This is how Mainz played In-possession while being coached under Bo Svensson. Though, what Is a box-4 and how can it be generated within this structure…? Look at their wingbacks, they are stretching the second phase, why? To allow tight connections to be maintained in the final third. And, as for the box-4, wide 10s dropping (rather than the CF) while the CF Is the outlet (rather than wingers running In-behind).
What does this structure mean for Barreiro though? Let’s talk about their pivot, because you probably noticed the yellow arrows I put on the pivot. They are rarely In the same horizontal line. This creates triangles In wide zones (CBs + wingbacks + near-side pivot player) and one pivot player will always be supporting build-up In zone-5 while the other will be In zone-8.
You probably think that these stats are poor, be honest. If you admit to that, truthy, I agree with you. I thought the same thing. 11.64 (41st percentile) for touches In the defensive third. 21.07 (7th percentile) for touches In the middle third. This, physiologically, cannot be a controller, this, for me, looks like a midfielder who struggles to command the respect from his teammates. Though, how Is he best In the possession phase? Creating overloads, decreasing the distances… We will re-visit his traits with / without the ball later, though, now, the focus switches to Mainz’s out-of-possession phase.
Something that you must understand about Mainz’s OOP structure / how they press is that although I labelled It as a 5–2–3, It Is actually a 5–3–2 starting point (meaning +1 for density In the first line) and this Is as Jae-Sung Lee (left wide 10) Is tactically baited into horizontally / diagonally pressing zone-6. — If we Imagine this press against a 3–2 base; JSL would push onto the wide right centre-back making It a 2v2 man-to-man battle In the centre (pivot vs pivot).
These two pictures above, as-well as highlighting the structure they use, that I’ve already explained to you, can also show us a big strength to Barreiro’s game that Is mainly centred around his ‘physical-profile’. It is his coverage of a vertical radius, the distances he makes up per stride. Over the last 365 days: he averages 6.28 ball recoveries per90, 1.17 tackles In the middle third and 0.59 tackles In the attacking third (97th percentile).
So, different from the In-possession phase, where you were still yet to be convinced. My words now, with the out-of-possession phase, has completely sold you a vision on Leandro Barreiro. That he is an ELITE presser. Though, what’d I’d like to call his ‘pressing-profile’ doesn’t end there, you see, Barreiro Is also an ELITE counter-presser.
Do you believe me when I talk about his ‘pressing-profile’ now? This Is an elite presser for both winning the ball In dangerous areas and winning the ball back to re-start attacks. Him being In the 97th percentile for tackles won In the attacking third comes as no surprise to me and shouldn’t to you either.
You may see this as a weird comparison, maybe, you may see these two as completely different. And, the truth Is, you wouldn't be wrong. Do you remember when I profiled Miguel Gutiérrez and used Micky Van-De-Ven as a reference point…? I do not find similar players, I identify references and patterns to assist my scouting mission. First, we must understand the traits of Mats Wieffer that I will use as the actual references; Wieffer is a carry-first player with long legs, very good carrying ability, he also moves within his last-line to make recoveries / follows the oppositions last attacker. Long legs?? You already know that Barreiro has long legs, though, If we look at the carrying of the two players, It is COMPLETLY different: Wieffer’s progressive carries are In the 76th percentile at 1.78 per90 and Barreiro’s progressive carries are In the 25th percentile at 0.77 per90. Though, why is this…? The legs-to-body ratio of these two players are the same, though, you must understand that Barreiro has slightly more muscular legs, which effects the overall gravity In the movement though he could use this to his advantage via getting more distance on the set-up touch with his back-foot (cannot carry well In a settled moment). It Is also worth noting how Wieffer is 188cm / 6'1 and you already know Barreiro’s height (174cm / 5'7), the former has a stronger core via his height advantage.
It Is simple, Barreiro can carry well on the right In a transitional moment, I am sure of that. (counter-attacks from corners, furthest eight In a 4–3 faux defensive base, etc).
So, from the observation I made around Barreiro’s ‘physical-profile’ just before this one, there are some Important factors that we must clear up, some questions that we must answer. We have probably established Barreiro as a ‘possession-minus’ profile of player (meaning he suits teams that rely on transitions more than settled play), though, the question is, Is he quick and Is he dynamic enough…? The two diagrams above this, shows something that I like to call ‘box-crashing’, do you understand? Basically arriving into the box from deep and therefore as a free player that the opposition’s last line wouldn’t of had time to adjust for (he started that movement from deeper by-the-way). We already know about the distances he covers per stride, so, I hope we can establish him as a quick player? His initial acceleration may be held back via his muscular legs though the length of his legs will set him apart over a long distance.
In conclusion, Leandro Barreiro emerges as a highly promising midfielder, possessing a well-rounded skill set that includes technical finesse, tactical intelligence, and admirable work ethic. His versatility allows him to seamlessly transition between defensive and offensive roles, making him a valuable asset for any team. By-the-way, you’ve read this far, so if you appreciate my work and If you think I provide value to your journey; follow me on here, though I also have a private publication that I post weekly tactical stuff on that I’ll link below…
