Scouting Report — Andrea Colpani
In the vast landscape of football talent, certain players emerge as promising prospects, capturing the attention of scouts and enthusiasts alike. Andrea Colpani, a young and dynamic footballer, stands at the forefront of this wave of emerging talent. This scouting report aims to provide a comprehensive overview of Colpani’s skills, attributes, and potential impact on the pitch.
Personal Details:
- Full Name: Andrea Colpani
- Date of Birth: 11th May 1999.
- Age: 24 y/o.
- Nationality: Italy.
- Height: 184 cm / 6'0.
- Position: Attacking Midfielder.
- Club: Monza.
As we delve into the analysis, we will explore Colpani’s technical prowess, tactical acumen, physical attributes, and the intangibles that make him a player worth monitoring. Whether dazzling with his footwork, contributing to strategic plays, or showcasing his versatility, Colpani has undoubtedly made a mark in the footballing world. This report aims to uncover the layers of his potential and shed light on the qualities that set him apart on the field.
5–2–1–2 against a 4–3–3, simply put, though, it goes so much deeper than ‘structures’. I will explain those details to you now, by the end of this section (I’ve got more pictures that I will show later) the ‘OOP-profile’ of Colpani will be covered to perfection, I can promise you that, you WILL be more aligned on the pressing / defensive dynamics that make this player unique, I have so much noted down from my scouting. So, I will start with the first observation now. Monza, in this example, are playing with a 2+1 lines of pressure as the first and second lines; Specifically, including Colpani central on AC’s holding midfielder, though, why is this important to note..? You see, a ‘mental’ trait that I had identified almost instantly after knowing the structure they where using to press, was that he would often show a poor defensive work-ethic while he was narrow… I initially profiled him as a ‘in-behind pick-pocketer’, as he’d want to either steal the ball from the opposition’s pivot (from behind) or sneakily pressure the opposition’s centre-backs (from behind). Though, it was only after watching his next game on the list, that, differently, he started wide in Monza’s pressing phase, resulting in him acting as a ‘faux-wingback’ in their settled defensive phase. This, is PERFECT when against a right-footed left-winger, (as Colpani is a left-footer on the right, with a poor upper-body), I will explain why he is on his ‘weaker’ side, later in this report, though, for now, I actually have a few pictures to highlight his ‘wide pressing / defending’…
PICTURE 1: I will start with the first, what is this showing..? It is an effort for highlighting his ‘springy knees’, he is defending (blocking) the left defensive half-space here, I have recently profiled Ritsu Doan, he is VERY similar In this phase, you can go read that after this one If you want. I will talk about Colpani’s biomechanics later in this piece, that will uncover the part of his body that contributes most helpfully towards these movements, though, before that, I will annotate the second picture here.
PICTURE 2: What Is this showing..? This Is an attempt to highlight his ‘faux-wingback’ defending that I told you about earlier, though, also, It shows how well he can laterally defend zone-7 / zone-13 (as a wide right defender)… Though, why Is this the case? Two things that you MUST understand; 1) his recovery run for getting In that ‘faux-wingback’ position took place INSTANTLY after zone-7 was activated via (I think) a one-two, while in a controlled / calm way, too, and, 2) do you notice how his legs are spread out In a lateral body position In this picture..? He is blocking of those zones that I told you that he laterally defends, BOTH his feet / toes are pointing towards the ball handerler (this shows an interest In his role, he is present with good concentration) and he is consistently scanning his shoulder to see for movements behind him.
THIS, Is how he must press / defend for the most success. NOT In the first line thanks to his scanning of his shoulders. Believe me, you should not try to ‘adjust’ a player’s role that generates such a ‘flow-state’, even If the adjustment may be small… Remember about his lack of work-ethic In a narrow OOP role that I told you about earlier…
I have already told you about his poor upper-body, and this should strengthen that claim. Although I have faith that he can work on this AOI In his ‘physical-profile’, as his movements of his shoulders have been **DECENT**, (only decent), from the assist zone.. It will take a long while, It is possible, though, you know about his age, so, for the time being, I can only recommend a role to be crafted around that… Cool, now the negative part Is done, should we discuss the positive..? His leg muscles are ELITE! Increased muscle with the upper-part of his legs (the higher you go the better those muscles look) and this helps with generating the distance on his passing, he just struggles with the power. Though, regardless, the muscle on the back of his legs aren’t as Impressive for the untrained eye to see… However, Is the lack of leg muscle on the back a bad thing? NO! What did I tell you about his ‘springy knees’…? That Is why / what.
The platform that I use to collect data from Is called ‘FBREF’ by-the-way, cool website, really simple and easy to use. You see, data Is not the ‘be all and end all’ for scouting, sounds obvious, though many try to Ignore this truth. They will learn, though the correct way to use data Is to ‘strengthen opinions’ and not to ‘form opinions’.. Recruitment is a risky game, no one at the top denies that, though, life is also a quick game, they do not spend days, months, or even years attempting to find the perfect data collections, that Is what separates us. Anyway… what piece from this graph should I highlight to you? 68th percentile (In his position) for progressive and total passing distances. He attempts 14.17 short passes per90, while completing 12.19 of them with a 86.0% completion rate (teammates In close proximity to him, so the risk of Interceptions are not there…). Though, If we switch are attention towards his long passing stats, where the receiver Is not within close proximity to him, he Is attempting 6.00 long passes per90, while completing 3.12 of them with a 52.0% completion rate.
Also, I will tell you about another conclusion that I came to after seeing both his OOP and IP actions. I purposefully didn’t tell you about this while discussing his ‘OOP-profile’, so, I will share this now; If him and one of his teammates are both going In for the same action, (duel, recieving the same pass, etc), Colpani WILL be the one to pull out…
Nursery, Primavera: the interview with Andrea Colpani after the goal in Atalanta-Salernitana — 6 year old interview, Andrea was 18 y/o:
- swaying body language, not still. Looking down often, poor eye contact.
‘(I) felt (like) being in the room together every now and then we talk about it and it went well.’
‘(I) really want to score goals in this championship (season) and finally there, I made the last of the championship.’
These are only a few translations that I got; bare In mind the age of the interview, the flaws In modern translation and the fact that he rarely puts himself on Interview duty. Like I say, I hope I’m overthinking, believe me, I really do, though I identified a problem and I MUST share It… These details, especially details centred around a ‘mental-profile’, could literally change a career. I am on his side, trying to save years of his career. Do you remember Timo Werner…?
Now, I understand COMPLETLY that Palladino Is a very Intelligent coach, believe me, I am not arrogant, I am so so humble… Do you remember when I told you that I’d share the reasons why Colpani Is played on the right as a one-footed left-footed player? I will fulfil that promise now; These are only some of the explanations that I have came up with…
- For quick switches of play from dead-ball situations / throw-Ins.. Wait, the Throw-In tactics and principles go, deep..? Correct, this Is a new realisation that I came to only recently. So much attention Is on settled play that we can often forget about the REAL game-changers. Wow… I do often analyse set-pieces (like corners) on my private publication called ‘Field Visions’, though, Throw-Ins… That Is something that deserves It’s own section. I will link Field Visions at the end of this report.
- For dynamic runs In behind to penetrate the opposition's last-line or to end up In goal-scoring situations, as this has him end up on his left-foot to finish the chance.. In-fact, I actually have a example for this, that I will show below.
Do you see how he Is now on his left-foot to finish across the keeper Into the far-corner..? The movement also started from the INTERIOR right half-space, that Is why the shooting angles works for him. Also, I will use this opportunity to highlight his ZOIs (zone-of-influences), his final third patterns that he is best playing with and to profile him as a specific midfield role… The ZOIs? It’s actually not like that, and you will understand with how I profile him, though, the specific areas are both the interior and exterior half-space and zone-14. He is someone who can indirectly access the left-sided (far-side) assist-zone from zone-14 via his strongest foot (then the cross is played across goal with far-post presence / the L8 as a box-crasher), but, anyway, about the now again… How would I profile him? And why isn’t it really about the ‘zones’ that he can influence games from…? You see, I would actually profile him as a ‘Thomas Müller raumdeuter’, to find the space, and to exploit the space. Similarly to Thelo Aasgaard of Wigan Athletic…
In conclusion, Andrea Colpani emerges as a promising talent with a multifaceted skill set that sets him apart on the field. His keen tactical awareness, technical proficiency, and ability to read the game make him a valuable asset. In addition to this conclusion, I said I would link Field Visions, and that Is exactly what I am going to do.
Field Visions is an exclusive educational platform that I dedicate myself WEEKLY, during the premier league action, to provide pre-match analyse, match reviews and very clear actionable steps / things to look for for anyone serious about making it in this game. I have huge plans for Field Visions, we are going to the TOP.
