After having invested massively in the reorganization of their attack in a spectacular way, Liverpool strengthened its defensive line with the signing of 26 million pounds sterling Giovanni Leoni of Serie A Side Parma. At only 18 years old, Italy Youth International only dips its toes in the high -level senior football swimming pool, but the Reds saw enough 14 league departures to sanction quickly.
Leoni started the 2024-25 campaign on the bench, but at Christmas, he had set foot in the first team. Then, during the second half of the season, he helped firm up the defense and convert the losses to prints – enough to keep the Crociati sheltered from relegation.
So, with his change of confirmed Premier League, how did Liverpool choose his goal and what will Leoni bring Leoni to the reigning champions?
How Liverpool identified and signed Leoni
For years, the signing of a promising young central defender has ranked well on the list of Liverpool priorities. Last summer, the Anfield club was interested in signing LENY YORO Before finally joining Manchester United. They were also admirers of Bournemouth Dean HuijsenWho made a move of 50 million pounds sterling in Real Madrid earlier this summer.
In just 17 Serie Apparitions has for last Parma, Leoni has established himself as one of the most exciting young talents in Italian football and corresponds to the profile that the champions of the Premier League have sought. He is naturally far from the finished article, but Liverpool is convinced that the defender of 6 feet 4 inches has all the physical attributes necessary to become a central world class defender, in particular with the possibility of learning from his idol Virgil Van Dijk.
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Having done his breakthrough for Parma under the manager Christian Chivu during the second half of last season, Leoni was discussed following his head coach at Inter Milan this summer. However, Liverpool – helped by the vast contacts of sports director Richard Hughes in Italy – was able to move quickly to obtain an agreement on the line, with sources saying to ESPN that the player was categorical on a transfer to Anfield despite the interest of several clubs in his country of origin and elsewhere in the first League.
There had been a suggestion that Liverpool could seek to lend Leoni this season, although this idea was quickly rejected by the club’s hierarchy. Although Liverpool is still continuing an agreement for the international defender of England Marc Guéhi, Leoni should join Van Dijk, Ibrahima Konaté And Joe Gomez As one of the rear-center options of Manager Arne Slot for the next campaign. – Beth Lindop
What Leoni brings to Liverpool
Leoni’s size and strength denies his tender age. He can always be a teenager, but he cuts an imposing silhouette on the ground and his shoulders seem to be steel. He clearly savor the physical duels with equally powerful attackers; During the last section of the season, he physically dominated Juventus’ Dusan Vlahovic On the way to a vital victory 1-0, while it was also brilliantly stood in Romelu Lukaku In a 0-0 draw with Napoli, going as far as man marking him for spells and literally following on the field.
This ability to manage solid n ° 9 is by far its outline outside competition. He is aggressive on the ground and strong in the air – his 63% aerial victory rate in Serie has last season was among the best – and he prosperous defending the box, already showing a good awareness of the place where the crosses and the cuts can land.
Leoni is versatile in his position, capable of playing like center of the right or left center in a rear four, or really anywhere on the other side of the line in a rear three. When parked in the center of a configuration of three men, he tends to go out, go through and find someone in a duel.
There are coach points for Liverpool to address. His selection of passes last season tended to be extremely sure, either playing it short for the nearest man, the goalkeeper, or listening to him up in the general direction of a rider before. It may have been a tactical instruction rather than a personal gap – Parma fought against relegation until the last day, which means that they were really unable to commit to risking the accumulation game – but the Sous Arne machine will want to see a more considered use of possession each time the ball is at its feet.
Leoni has also never worn the ball in the field and in space, opening the ground for itself and the others. Again, it could have been by design, but since it joined an at a predominant elite team, it should be noted that it has been classified in the first centile (that is to say the lowest) in Serie A for the portage of bullets and the sixth centile for the progressive passage. – Sam Tighe
How Leoni will adapt to Liverpool
To have a chance of success as a central defender in the Premier League these days, you will probably have to be tall and strong. Look at the physical construction of the defensive body that Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool have assembled, for example; Leoni clearly ticks this box. It will be well adapted to the battle of the Titanic which takes place now in the sets, regardless of the opponent, and a good adjustment with regard to the fight against the tribes of really physical attackers that we see in the Premier League.
However, there can be a small concern about the fact that, even if Leoni had to become a powerful player, he does not have the type of speed and high -end mobility that the best central defenders have. According to the gradientIts maximum speed exceeded 31.82 km / h last season, only 54th among the central defenders of Serie A who played 900 minutes or more. For a comparison of Liverpool, Van Dijk recorded 33.79 km / h and Konaté 33.57 km / h.
Since the lateral rear of Liverpool will be likely to operate in an extremely attacker, recovery speed and mobility features in their central defenders will be greater than ever. The fact that Leoni is barely fast jumps from the band and the statistics confirm it. It is not the fastest over five meters either, and is not particularly smooth with a changing direction or deceleration.
The rest of his game can be easily finished with coaching, play with better players and play in a larger system. Take a player out of a battle of relegation in the impasse, and you will naturally see more qualities on the ball manifest. From there, the location should be able to deduce exactly how long Leoni will need before being able to have a positive impact on the senior team. – Tighe
