Brazilian defensive midfielder, Allan Marques Loureiro had been a regular for Serie A outfit Napoli last season but has had to be content with substitute appearances so far this season. The player may move away from the club in a bid to secure regular first team football. A number of clubs have been showing interest to sign the player, and one of them is Premier League outfit, Watford.
The Hornets are currently 13th in the Premier League table with 30 points from 25 matches and will look to strengthen their squad further in the hope of aiming a better performance next season in the Premier League. They have a number of good players in the midfield in the form of Etienne Capoue, Valon Behrami, but with Tom Cleverley likely to return to his parent club, Everton, at the end of the season, Walter Mazzarri may be well interested in adding more depth and quality to the midfield.
The 1.73 meters tall defensive midfielder has featured in 22 Serie A matches so far, 9 of them coming from the bench, and helped in setting up 4 goals for his team, which is an excellent return for a defensive midfielder. The player is a strict disciplinarian and has been booked only 2 times this season and 27 times in his entire career spanning 174 games. He is known for his clean tackles to gain back possession in the middle of the pitch.
The player is not very good in the air, winning 2 duels against his counterparts every 5 matches but has good passing feet. He has a pass completion rate of 85.1%, and helps the midfielders of his team string passes in the build up to the attack.
The gaffer of Napoli, Maurizio Sarri, has used him as a super sub on many occasions this season, with 75% of his assists coming from 9 substitute appearances in the Italian top flight. The player has a good defensive contribution, intercepting passes off the surface, helping in thwarting the opposition attacks.
The player came off from the bench during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 tie against Real Madrid at Santiago Bernabeu, at the 75th-minute mark and ended with a rating of 6.1 on WhoScored.com, which is quite impressive as a substitute.
With Watford looking set to spend the 2017-18 season as well in the top flight, Mazzarri will surely be looking to improve his options, and it won’t come as a surprise if Watford bid for the Brazilian defensive midfielder, who has qualities to be a success in the Premier League.
Statistics via WhoScored
