Outside90’s Joshua Scarcella casts an eye over the five best individual performances to come from the weekend’s Serie A action.
Mattia Perin (Sassuolo vs Genoa)
This 23-year-old is touted as one of the best developing goalkeepers in the country and has a battle on his hands to claim Gianluigi Buffon’s throne at the conclusion of his career. The Italian national team has not had a problem finding world class custodians over the past 40 years, with many of the No.1’s stating their claim as the best of all time.
Making a gallant denial early in the match almost had Perin substituted off with an injury, however, he continued onto amount four more saves. The pick of the bunch came in the 28th minutes, diving to his left to make a fingertip stop in his man of the match performance.
Key Stats
65% Passing Accuracy
Two Clearances
Five Saves
POPULAR ARTICLES
Bundesliga – Team of the Week – Matchday 29 [VIDEO]
Hatem Ben Arfa and Newcastle United’s opposite paths lead to a similar foe
La Liga – Tactical Analysis – Villarreal 2 Getafe 0
Alessandro Gamberini (Chievo vs Carpi)
The veteran centre-back is best known for his time spent with Fiorentina during 2005-2012, making eight appearances for the national team for tournament qualifying matches during this time.
He has now spent his last two seasons in Verona, and despite only playing his second match for 2016 this week against Carpi, has been a regular first team member.
An amazing defensive effort in a wonderful centre-back partnership that restricted the away side to just three shots on target for the match was on display and was capped-off with an assist from a corner to help the team to a 1-0 win.
Key Stats
78% Passing Accuracy
Five Aerials Won
Eleven Clearances
Five Interceptions
One Assist
Paul Pogba (Milan vs Juventus)
Poor team cohesion coupled with poor personal performances seem a distant memory now for the Frenchman, appearing in our top five list for the third consecutive week.
Pogba put in another fantastic performance on the left-side of midfield, unluckily striking the post from a free-kick just after the restart, but finding the back of the net not long after as he controlled the ball off a corner and guided it over the head of Gianluigi Donnarumma.
It is Pogba’s seventh goal of this Serie A season, which leaves him one goal shy of last seasons efforts.
Key Stats
85% Passing Accuracy
Five Tackles
Two Key Passes
One Shot on Target
One Goal
Jose Callejon (Napoli vs Verona)
2015-16 has been an indifferent season for the 29-year-old, despite his club’s fantastic form over the duration. He continues to be a first team player, yet not having a similar impact on matches compared to previous seasons.
This is reflective on his disciplinary record and number of goals scored.
The Spanish winger’s performance against Verona was on par with the Callejon we are used to watching, his blistering pace down the wings was too much to handle for the Verona defence, earning a penalty in the first-half and leaving the away side with 10 men going into the break. A simple tap-in halfway into the second period ended a fantastic performance.
Key Stats
82% Passing Accuracy
Two Tackles
Three Key Passes
Two Shots on Target
One Goal
Miroslav Klose (Palermo vs Lazio)
This is the second occasion the German veteran has appeared in our top five list within a month, notching up four goals and two assists over that same period.
A brace against a Palermo side low on confidence began after just ten minutes, once again being in the right spot at the right time, a trademark of the 34-year-old.
His second came four minutes later, using his experience and strength to tower over Roberto Vitiello and header home from just a yard out.
Key Stats
75% Passing Accuracy
Four Aerials Won
Three Shots on Target
One Assist
Two Goals
What are your thoughts? Let us know by dropping a comment below via our Facebook comment box. Make sure you follow us on Twitter @Outside90 and like us on Facebook.
