Lamini Fati has joined Real Madrid from Leganés B.
Leganes is home to some of the most promising talents in Tercera RFEF, where Leganés play, with the likes of Iker Bachiller and Diego Lorenzo also on the books.
The goal of investing in a player from the youth categories is a potential promotion to the first team in the long term, as has been seen in the recent rise of Raúl Asencio.
In this scouting report and tactical analysis, we will analyse Lamini Fati’s profile in-depth.
We will explore the specific tactical role Fati has played at Leganés and what he will face when he arrives at Real Madrid “C” or Real Madrid Castilla.
Who Is Lamini Fati?
With a short trajectory in Spanish football, he had been playing at Leganés for years, signing his first professional contract in 2022.
His mother is Angolan, his father is from Guinea Bissau, and he has Spanish nationality.
According to reports in Spain, Real Madrid had been following him for quite some time before finalising this deal.
Even though he was close to signing with Valencia last summer, Leganés held onto the player until just this week when Los Blancos made their move.
This season at Leganés B under José Sánchez Capdevila, he has been important as the left centre-back in Tercera RFEF, playing 13 matches during the first part of the season and scoring once.
Lamini Fati’s Physical Profile
Fati’s physical profile catches the eye.
Not only is he of competitive height at 18 years old, but he is also big in terms of muscle mass, mainly in his lower body.
Although he is not very agile or flexible, his body allows him to be powerful in physical duels and to impose himself aerially.
He stands out in aerial play in both boxes.
Offensively, he has been one of the main threats for Leganés B this season from set-pieces.
Defensively, thanks to his physique, he tends to pin correctly in man-to-man marking configurations and wins many balls as a result.
Lamini Fati’s Tactical Intelligence
Although his physical profile immediately stands out, Fati makes a difference in his tactical awareness.
That is why so many teams have been keeping tabs on the young defender.
Firstly, he understands how to take advantage of his physique.
He is always attentive to his position, with competitive and consistent decision-making off the ball and in different contexts.
In aerial play, this is brilliant.
Defending crosses, he detects the man he needs to mark and overwhelms him.
The distance between him and his mark is pretty much as close as possible.
As Figure 1 shows, he must have good body orientation when defending crosses.
He can maintain an overwhelming man-to-man marking presence while waiting for the potential cross.
Doing several important things at the same time during a fast-paced game requires a huge level of focus.
Fati has developed this attribute well over the years.
In Figure 2, Fati uses a similar technique to win the ball in the air.
He is very close to his mark, which makes the attacker uncomfortable.
Sometimes, Fati’s use of his arms can result in fouls due to his size and aggressive nature when marking.
What does this tell us?
The nature of Fati’s defensive actions suggests that he is a centre-back who wants to be constantly in possession.
Once his team loses the ball, he tries to anticipate and exploit his strengths in man-to-man situations with aggression.
Lamini Fati’s Offensive Set-Piece Actions
Aerial play is not only a defensive topic.
The centre-back uses his reading of the game and physical superiority to become a significant threat in the opposition’s penalty area from set-pieces, as his goal against Alcorcón B shows.
— Footie Clips (@FootieClips) December 18, 2024
Here, in attack, he uses the same technique that he uses defensively.
He stays close to his marker, using his arms to maintain the distance.
Finally, in that case, there was a focus on attacking the space in behind, with a constant focus on the opponents’ weakness and the mismatches of their defensive line sinking back during the set-piece.
The quality finish was the icing on the cake.
Leganés B Style Of Play & Tactics
José Sánchez Capdevila’s style of play and tactics at Leganés B enhanced Fati’s abilities.
Frequently, we hear the word “out” from him to his team, referring to the height of his defensive line.
We saw the biggest proof of this against RSD Alcalá.
His team always wanted to be in the opposition’s half, and Fati enjoys it without the ball.
Without having an insane pace, his stride is powerful because of his big legs.
Running back, he is confident and accurate even when dealing with complex actions like quick covers or switches.
We have a good example below.
— Footie Clips (@FootieClips) December 19, 2024
Fati reads the game well and communicates well non-verbally with his teammates in the defensive line to execute the best potential adjustments while running back.
Lamini Fati’s Anticipation
Considering the trust in his stride to correct his positioning and the area behind him as the most aggressive centre-back, Fati makes many recoveries by engaging his mark in ground duels.
In Figure 4, we see some things that we have already discussed, like the distance between Fati and his mark and how he uses his long legs to reach the ball even farther away than his rival.
Lamini Fati’s Technical Ability
Fati is not in demand for build-up responsibility.
He has not been tested much under high and intense pressure at Leganés B.
However, we wouldn’t say delivering the ball forward is a strength in his game based on what has been shown.
Nevertheless, he is accurate, and his body control before receiving the ball is always good.
Furthermore, his tactical intelligence helps him to hide his potential trouble under pressure.
Even his reading of the game and trust in his capacity to recover fast allow him to move forward sometimes when he thinks the time is right.
In Figure 5, he opens a passing lane when moving forward during a throw-in.
He made his decision on the next steps before receiving it, and his subsequent pass was accurate.
His teammates provided a level of protection behind in the rest-defence structure.
Additionally, as we have insisted during the analysis, Fati is confident in his ability to recover quickly if he loses the ball.
Fati knows how to orient his body to receive and deliver with his left foot, and his accuracy with his weak foot is also trustworthy.
How Will He Fit In At Real Madrid Castilla / Real Madrid C?
Known for the first-team DNA, Real Madrid Castilla and C tend to defend high, with a lot of space behind their back.
Real Madrid Youth Categories Defensive Territory Map
In positional proposals, both youth teams look appropriate for Fati’s talent.
Even Real Madrid C usually uses a hybrid back-three from the backline, and there Fati could be the left centre-back in Alfredo Sotres’ role.
Conclusion
Considering Figure 7 and Fati’s current role at Leganés, Fati’s main area of improvement is increasing his passing range.
However, his reading of the game, physical profile, and style of play seem to be a perfect fit for the Real Madrid youth categories.
Fati’s project is still one of the most promising in Spanish youth categories, and the demand for fresh blood in the Real Madrid squad is high.
Even if he isn’t immediately a first-team project, he will find a new place to develop his football in Real Madrid’s youth categories, which are constantly asking for a step forward.
Fati is an anomaly off the ball.
Fortunately, the change in style of play when changing clubs should not have a serious impact, and he knows how to defend far from his goal.
Additionally, his confidence and focus during the 90 minutes can help him adapt to this new challenge.
