Spalletti still in search of Borja Valero’s best position
- Jordan Russell (@JordRuss96)
One of the key issues the Tuscan tactician must find an answer for is the role of Borja Valero. The Spaniard has established himself as a vital part of the team, considering he can be used as a central midfielder and trequartista. However, which is his best position?
He is much more influential in a deeper role, as he touches the ball more often and less demands are placed on him from a physical point of view. Why? He can protect the defence with his excellent positional sense and therefore is required to do less running without the ball.
As the heat map showed after the 3-2 win over AC Milan, he is much more important for Inter as a central midfielder. The ex-Fiorentina man is an expert at relieving pressure from the defence and carrying the ball out from deep positions. This allows play to be spread more quickly which then means the wide players are much more involved in the attacking build-up play.
However, deploying Borja in a more advanced position on Saturday would bring calmness and a certain level of unpredictability to the team which was missing during the second half against Udinese. Should this happen, Marcelo Brozović would be sacrificed as he struggles to play as one of two central midfielders in Spalletti’s 4-2-3-1. Time will tell what the coach decides, but it is difficult to envisage a place for both of them.