At the start of the 2020/2021 season, Ilya Zabarnyi was an unknown player in Europe who had not played a minute in a senior competitive match, but now he is well-known around Europe and is labelled as a wonderkid.
He was a starter for both Dynamo Kyiv and Ukraine, which tells us a lot about how much he impressed in his first senior matches.
Zabarnyi played all six matches (full minutes) in the group stage of the Champions League, as well as three qualifying matches.
He managed to collect 13 caps since October, and he was a vital part of the Ukrainian starting XI in the EURO 2020.
Zabarnyis idol is Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk, and he aspires to play alongside him.
Through this scout report, we aim to describe Zabarnyis abilities, highlighting his strengths and weaknesses.
This tactical analysis will help us understand why this youngster has made such rapid development in a short amount of time, becoming one of the most sought-after defenders in the game.
Chelsea showed interest in him before the EURO 2020 tournament, and it appears they contacted Dynamo Kyiv for negotiations.
Ilya Zabarnyi Player overview
Ilya Zabarnyi is an 18-year-old centre-back.
Transfermarkt values him at € 11 million, and his price growth has been rapid since October 2020, when he was valued at € 50,000.
Zabarnyi is 189cm tall, and he is right-footed.
In this image, we can see how Zabarnyi compares to centre-backs from the Ukrainian Premier League who have played at least 500 minutes this season.
His heatmap indicates that Dynamo Kyiv was dominant in most matches, given its high positioning.
Based on



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