Calvin Bassey at Ajax 2022/23: The monstrous defender ready to dominate Eredivisie – scout report

Calvin Bassey has recently impressed on one of the biggest stages around Europe, helping Rangers reach the final of the UEFA Europa League in what was only his second season in professional football, and his first season of regular game time. This is a stunning story, considering the fact that Bassey only signed for an academy at the age of 16, joining Leicester City after impressing on trial for the club.

After five years at the club, he left on a free transfer and joined Rangers at the age of 20. In his first season, he played a bit part role in the journey to winning the Scottish Premiership. Basseys breakout season came in 2021/22, where he made 50 appearances in all competitions. These performances caught the attention of Ajax, who were willing to spend around ??20 million to bring him over to the Dutch capital.

Having only spent two seasons in senior football, Bassey is playing as a central defender for one of the biggest clubs in Europe and will have high expectations to live up to. Players in Basseys position usually reach their primes at a slightly later age and so the fact that Bassey is playing at such a high level so early shows just how promising he is.

This tactical analysis will come in the form of a scout report to show what makes Calvin Bassey stand out as a 22-year-old. The analysis will highlight the skills Bassey possesses that make him so strong both technically and physically and why he can go on to become a great central defender in the future. We will also look at how he has slotted into the tactics used at Ajax.

Player Profile

During his last season at Rangers, Calvin Bassey started equal amounts of games at both left-back and centre-back. His versatility is helpful, although his preferred position is in central defence, where he has been playing this season for Ajax.

As seen below in the heat map, Bassey starts games as the LCB and has the ability to cover the channel, with dark shades being prevalent across most of the left flank of his half. Calvin Bassey is 185 cm tall, combined with a weight of 76kg, which means that Bassey has a towering presence over his opponents with his lean frame allowing him to stay mobile.

On-the-ball qualities

Coming into a total football culture at Ajax, it is clear that Bassey has to be comfortable on the ball in order to break his way through into the team. Bassey is very comfortable on the ball and has thrived in a possession-heavy system where he gets lots of touches on the ball. The pass map below shows just how many passes he has made despite only appearing in six games for Ajax. Bassey allows Ajax to shift defensive blocks from side to side, and open up passing lanes to play through.