How this Sassuolo midfielder could solve West Ham's issues!

How could a midfielder from Sassuolo solve West Ham's current issues?

Davide Frattesi is a 23 year old Italian midfielder that plays for Serie A side Sassuolo and in my opinion, has the ability to completely change West Ham’s midfield, and could even serve as a replacement for captain Declan Rice if he leaves the club in the summer!

In the Serie A this season, Frattesi has scored 4 goals with a pass completion rate of 76%, also showcasing many technical abilities for the Italian outfit. He is definitely seen as more of a technical player than a defensive minded player, but the defensive side of his game is still good, with his ability to intercept passages of play being above average amongst other players in the league and having just above average percentage of challenges won - not too bad for someone who’s seen as more of a technical player than defensive!

In comparison to Tomas Soucek, it is evident that Frattesi’s defensive ability needs to be worked on, but being just 23 years of age, he certainly has time on his side. Frattesi is more likely to create from deeper positions than Soucek is, as Soucek relies on getting into the box to make a large impact on the attack, which leaves Declan Rice alone in the midfield. Should Frattesi sign for the Hammers, he would allow Rice to play more of a box-to-box role, whilst Frattesi plays as deeper playmaking role. Although Frattesi creates from deep, he does tend to find himself in the box often, with him playing 20 passes in the box this season in comparison to Soucek’s 15 passes, and 163 passes in the final third in comparison to Soucek’s 143 passes.

Frattesi is a very agile player for a midfielder, and I can imagine he would work well alongside Lucas Paqueta in this sense as both provide fast movements on and off the ball, as well as being resistant to a team press from the opposition side. This could lead to West Ham playing faster tempo football in contrast to their typical slow buildups, low block and counter attack kind of football that teams seem to have figured out.

What do you think about Davide Frattesi? Let me know in the comments!