Giacomo Raspadori Scout Report At Napoli 2022/2023 – The Two-Footed Centre Forward With Sergio Agüero Like Qualities

The ball was floated over the top of the England backline in a manner that only Leonardo Bonucci could pull off from such a deep position.

There were several defenders back for Gareth Southgate’s side, with both Kyle Walker and Eric Dier primed to clear the ball away to diminish another wasted attack by the Azzurri.

Walker attempted to take the ball down but completely mistimed his trap as the ball continued on to the right foot of Italian youngster Giacomo Raspadori, who completely deflated its trajectory with ease.

The stadium rose to its feet.

The San Siro hadn’t seen a glorious pluck from the sky since the days that Ronaldinho glided around the historic, carpeted turf.

The ball skewed slightly astray to the left as Walker recovered his position, standing up Raspadori, looking to show him onto his weaker left foot.

With a quick turn on the ball, the 22-year-old pushed it ever so graciously to the right, dropped his shoulder, and unleashed a vigorous strike with authority.

Within a second of leaving his foot, the ball thumped against the net, flying past Nick Pope in the process as the ground erupted.

1-0 Italy, a scoreline that would remain until the referee blew for full-time.

Raspadori had bagged his fifth goal for the national side, but this was undoubtedly the most important as the young striker showed his class to millions around the world.

Having moved to Napoli on loan in the summer, Raspadori is a name the footballing universe will be hearing about quite regularly henceforth.

This tactical analysis piece will serve as a scout report on the Sassuolo loanee.

It will be an analysis of his strengths and weaknesses, focusing particularly on his qualities in possession, as well as how he fits into the tactics of both his club and his country.

Giacomo Raspadori Player profile

Raspadori does not possess an archetypal build for a centre-forward.

The Italian international is very lean, weighing 69kg, or 152lbs, and is also quite small in stature at 5’8” or 172cm overall.

His frame is almost identical to that of the former Manchester City number ‘9’ Sergio Agüero.

Like Agüero, Raspadori doesn’t let his petite size affect him against more physically imposing central defenders and uses his body extremely well.

Normally, when a young frontman makes his or her first steps into professional football, they are shoehorned out to the flanks to ease them into the side, given how burdensome the centre-forward position can be for inexperienced players.

Players like Wayne Rooney and Thierry Henry started out as wide forwards upon their moves to Manchester United and Arsenal, respectively, before eventually taking over as strikers.

Raspadori has followed the same path.

Last season, with Gianluca Scamacca leading the line for Sassuolo, the nippy forward was often deployed as a winger, primarily on the left flank, which is evident from the player’s heatmap.

Giacomo Raspadori Heat Map

However, this time around, for club and country, Raspadori has been starting as a centre-forward.

Unfortunately, with Napoli, given how influential Victor Osimhen has been once again this season, Raspadori has been forced to wait patiently for his turn up front.