Ilaix Moriba: The next “wonderkid” to join RB Leipzig – scout report

The Red Bull organization are no strangers to procuring young talent from across the globe, and the jewel in their multi-club crown, RB Leipzig, continued in this vein this summer.

However, rather than bringing talent from more obscure parts of the world, or smaller clubs (often feeder clubs within the Red Bull organization), they bucked the trend, by taking two talents from two of the world’s most notorious producers of talent: Ajax and Barcelona. From the former, they signed Brian Brobbey, a 19-year-old Dutch youth international on a free transfer, and the latter, Ilaix Moriba.

Moriba was a more expensive deal, joining for £14.4 million. Leipzig swooped quickly, with the Catalan giants in need of raising funds, and signed a Spanish youth international in Moriba, who is only 18 himself  and has widely been touted by many as the next Paul Pogba.

Whether he reaches such heights remains to be seen, but it is yet another smart signing from a club who rarely do anything but.

This tactical analysis and scout report will look at what Moriba can bring to Leipzig in this current season and beyond.

Positioning and movement

Moriba is relatively flexible within the central-midfield position. Last season for Barcelona’s first team he gained minutes as a single and double pivot, as a number eight, and as a number 10. However, the majority of his minutes came in that as a double-pivot or as a double-8. He predominantly played on the left side of the central-midfield unit, given his two-footedness as a player, and this is reflected in the heat map from his 2021/22 Barcelona performances, shown below. We can see much of his actions come in the half-space areas, and that whilst there are patches showing he will get on the ball inside his own half, the vast majority comes in the opposition half. 

Whilst Moriba is a creative talent, he predominantly influences the game from slightly deeper areas, often anchoring advanced attacks or prolonged periods of possession. If the ball is being worked down the left-flank, then Moriba ensures he is available in the left half-space slightly withdrawn from the bulk of the opposition defence. From this position, he offers an option for his teammates to recycle possession, where he can simply retain possession, or perhaps look for a straight through pass or a switch of play (which we will look into in more detail later on). Regardless of his decision in possession, Moriba scans consistently, often twice before receiving the ball, and decides on his attacking action before getting on the ball. We can see him scanning as he looks to receive in this position in the image below.