Five Serie A breakout stars this season
Carlo Garganese
- 15 Dec 2021 21:10 GMT
- 4 min read
Serie A is no longer the all-powerful league it was in the 1980s and 1990s, a time when all the best players in the world would move to the peninsula for astronomical prices.
Instead, Italy’s clubs – even the bigger ones – are unable buy ready-made stars and have to work at developing players much more than they did in the past.
TRENDING
This results in more breakout stars coming through – and so, here are five fresh names who have impressed in 2021/22.
Beto (Udinese)
Beto was a complete unknown when he arrived at Udinese this past summer from Portuguese side Portimonense, on loan with an option to buy.
But the 23-year-old has immediately shown himself to be a force of nature, at least physically.
Standing at 6ft 4in, Beto possesses ferocious power and pace and has been labelled by some as a “right-footed Romelu Lukaku”.
As his strike-partner Gerard Deulofeu told The Italian Football Podcast, that description isn’t quite accurate but “Beto has this mentality to push on the pitch, to improve every single game. We will do great things together and score a lot of goals together.”
They are already doing great things, with Beto contributing seven Serie A goals already.
Mike Maignan (Milan)
There are few bigger tasks in football than having to succeed a goalkeeping phenomenon.
It is a problem that haunted Man Utd for years after Peter Schmeichel left and it is one that many feared would afflict Milan when Gigio Donnarumma left for PSG this past summer.
However, Mike Maignan has been so good that Donnarumma has barely been missed at all.
Apart from one poor game in the Champions League exit to Liverpool – and an unlucky spell on the sidelines - Maignan has been supreme. He has looked like the complete goalkeeper, commanding his box and defence with authority. He will surely be France’s long-term number one very soon.
Bremer (Torino)
Bremer has been highly-rated for a while, with the Brazilian heavily linked with a move to the Premier League last season.
However, it is this season where he has truly exploded and demonstrated that he is certainly ready to join a big club.
The 24-year-old has undoubtedly been the best defender in Serie A in the first half of the season, despite playing for a mid-table Torino side.
The centre back boasts excellent pace, is aggressive and is superb in the air. Only two players in the league have averaged more aerial balls won a game than Bremer this campaign. He also has scored two goals.
Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa (Napoli)
Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa has been one of the surprises of the season, not just in Italy but in all of Europe.
Those who watched the Cameroonian at Fulham would not have believed that the central midfielder had it in him to become a top-class player.
However, that is exactly what Anguissa has been since moving to Napoli on loan for the season, with an option to buy.
The 26-year-old has been an indomitable force at the heart of the Napoli side, providing the brawn to Fabian Ruiz’s brain. An unfortunate injury to Anguissa saw Napoli dip massively having initially surged to the top of the table in the early months.
Teun Koopmeiners (Atalanta)
Teun Koopmeiners’ agent Bart Baving offered his client to every top club in Italy this summer but was summarily rejected by Juventus, Inter and Milan, while Roma couldn’t close a deal.
Instead, Koopmeiners joined Atalanta where, after an early bedding-in period, he has already established himself as one of the most impressive central midfielders in the league.
He possesses a lovely left foot, is a leader on the pitch, and fits in perfectly to Atalanta’s high-press, high-octane style of play.
At just 23, he has a big room for improvement too.
