Written by Umberto Pelà (26.03.2023)
Living a Second Prime
Picture this. After 4 years with erratic performances, you leave Manchester United aged 29. Parma, a small Serie A club, take you on as a starting full back. Some would say that you are past your prime, and that your career is nearing an end. You’ve had your highs, but it is now looking like your playing time will fizzle out shortly.
In fairness, I think we could all commonly agree on that.
However, for Matteo Darmian, this wasn’t the case. He wanted another in. Another chance. He felt like there was more to give, and Inter Milan’s Antonio Conte understood this. Over the summer of 2020, Darmian moved to la “Beneamata” in a transfer worth €2.5 million. The transfer came with a lot of scrutiny from the fans as they deemed the Italian wingback not worthy of a side challenging for the Scudetto.
Over the course of the three past seasons, Darmian has shown us all why he deserved that move — and perhaps, how much more he could have given to the footballing world if he had made different choices throughout the course of his career.
That same 2020-2021 season where his arrival was so heavily criticized, Darmian played an instrumental role in Inter’s 19th Scudetto win. Within the span of one month, he struck two winning goals – against Cagliari first, and Hellas Verona second – which extended Inter’s lead at the top of the Serie A.
It is over the past two years however, that Darmian has properly demonstrated his value and just how ductile of a player he is. In Inter’s 3-5-2 (with both Antonio Conte and Simone
Inzaghi), Darmian has been able to slip in at Right Center-Back and both the Wing-Back positions seamlessly. A seemingly humble player, Darmian has never complained about his minutes — working hard and finding space in an already-packed Inter roster.
In terms of numbers, this Underrated episode might be the least flashy of them all. Darmian doesn’t really appear as a flabbergasting individual in terms of statistics. In fact, as a lover of the beautiful game, I’d defend the Italian wing-back by saying that you have to watch him play to understand his added value to this Inter team.
Effectively, what makes Darmian special is that he is reliable. He plays simple, and is amongst the intelligent players in this Inter team. His experience – both international and domestic – has allowed him to recognize various situations on the field. In turn, this experience allows him to emerge as a player that always has a positive impact on the game.
The idea which sees him play simple – and do so well – can be seen in his numbers. Compared to other fullbacks around Europe, Darmian appears in the top 18% for pass completion (83.6% of passes attempted completed), tackles, and blocks. In contrast to that, he falls in the bottom 7% of wingbacks with progressive carries. Now aged 33, Darmian understands his physical limits, and adapts his playing style by moving off the ball and playing the right pass.
Specifically, watching Inter Milan’s games closely, Darmian is extremely able at manipulating space to find the striker. With Inter’s build up from the back being very deep, players have to try and create space where it is very limited. Darmian does a great job at dropping deep with his feet on the touch line, to then find the striker with a first-time pass curling in or combining with midfielder Nicolà Barella. This ball – which may appear as simple to many – kills midfields. Whilst the opposition is stepping up to press, a well-weighted ball to a dominant striker like Edin Džeko or Romelu Lukaku can shift teams massively. Testimony to this, we can see that Darmian disposes of various weapons in his arsenal to get out of pressure. His pass completion on medium length passes (between 10 meters and 30 meters) is at 88.2%, whilst his long passes (30+ meters) completion is at 59.7% (top 17% of fullbacks).
Furthermore, what also sets apart Darmian from other players in his category, is his clutch gene. Darmian rarely gets forward, but when he does, he is dangerous. Darmian wins the ball high up the field (0.57 tackles per 90 in the attacking third) and is remarkably precise in the final third. His Goals/Shot (0.29 per 90) numbers set him in the top 1% of fullbacks worldwide. This season, he has contributed with one massive winning goal against Atalanta and 2 assists over the course of 1819 minutes.
Whilst his playing time may not be as high as he may desire, he has never misplaced a word publicly, leading me to think that he must be an invaluable asset to have within a team environment. Darmian’s second prime is fascinating to watch, and Inter fans have grown accustomed to appreciating his unique, remarkable value.
References
https://fbref.com/en/players/96e0490d/scout/365_m1/Matteo-Darmian-Scouting-Report