Monagas SC managed to grab their fourth win of the season on the seventh matchday of Liga FUTVE in Venezuela. The opponents were Zulia FC. The hosts played in a 4-4-2 formation with overlapping full-backs but failed to create many chances in the match, despite scoring two goals to win 2-0. Both full-backs were involved in some attacks and created some danger in front of Zulia’s goal with their under- and overlapping runs. After Aquiles Ocanto scored a header from close range, 16-year-old David Martinez Morales snatched his first professional goal. The assist came from Panamanian right-back Ivan Anderson, who has three goal contributions in the league now for Monagas SC, according to Transfermarkt.
Ratings:
- A1 – Very good, could play higher
- A2 – Strong potential to play higher
- B1 – Good, strong player at level
- B2 – Potential to be a strong player at level
- C – Average for the level, rewatch
- D – Below average in this match
David Martínez Morales
- Nationality: Venezuelan
- Age: 16
- Date of birth: 07/02/2006
- Club: Monagas SC
- Career: Monagas SC
- Position: Left Wing
- Secondary position: Right Wing
- Preferred foot: Left
David Martinez Morales played as a left-winger for Monagas SC in the first half but moved to the right-wing in the second half before being subbed off in the 62nd minute. Standing at 178 cm with a normal build, he has a good frame for a winger. The Venezuelan looked quick on the first few meters and was capable of maintaining that speed. His good bursts of speed helped him to get away from his marker. He changed directions quickly when sprinting in a straight line. Near the half-hour mark, he tried to burst past his opponent only using one touch. At this particular moment, you could see that he’s still a youth player who plays at the senior level. He had the speed to get past his opponent but did not quite have the power to beat him in the duel. This was also seen in some defensive ground duels, where he was too nonchalant and passive in a duel. He did not get away with it and lost most of his physical duels.
David Martinez Morales’s intensity when Zulia was in possession was not good enough yet. He sometimes failed to track back and it seemed like he didn’t have the power to keep running up and down the wing. Especially after he just sprinted towards Zulia’s box he didn’t track back. The fact that he was subbed off after 62 minutes also indicates that his stamina and endurance aren’t great yet. David Martinez Morales did well to scan before receiving the ball and immediately found his teammate in space with a one-touch pass. Throughout the match, there were more situations in which David Martinez Morales showed good intelligence. On the counterattack, he carried the ball forward and one of his teammates made a run in behind. However, he was offside and David Martinez Morales spotted that and didn’t play the through pass. He also often looked up while carrying the ball forward.
In the seventh minute of the game, David Martinez Morales nearly opened the score after he received the ball on the edge of the box. The Venezuelan dropped his opponent to the ground after changing direction and he forced the opponent’s goalkeeper to make a good save. His shooting technique with his left foot was really good. The Venezuelan has a good crossing technique. He took the corners from the left side and even though his delivery wasn’t great from the corners, he showed a good crossing technique. David Martinez Morales created one chance from one of his crosses but Ivan Anderson failed to direct his header towards the goal. His final pass and delivery need to improve in the future though, but given the fact that he’s only just 16, he will improve.
David Martinez Morales always tries to create passing angles for his teammates in the first phase of the build-up. He shows good intensity without the ball when Monagas are in possession. The Venezuelan often starts close to the sideline and then either stays there awaiting the ball or moves inside into space. The Venezuelan showed great receiving skills in this match, controlling easy passes with ease and even controlling aerial passes perfectly. He received some awkward, bouncy passes but took some great touches to get away from his marker using only one touch which was impressive. Consequently, David Martinez Morales often showed quick decision-making and good vision as he immediately played a through pass to one of the strikers. As mentioned before, his final pass can do with some improvement, but the vision and intention are there.
He takes corners with his left foot and always dribbles with his left foot which indicates that he’s a left-footed player. His ability with his right foot was quite inconsistent. He played a nice through pass early in the first half but later in the first half he had one sloppy pass with his right foot. He generally avoided using his right foot when dribbling, too. There was a situation in the first half where he was in acres of space. I want him to be carrying the ball forward aggressively in these situations and make up some ground. However, he was casually strolling with the ball at his feet and even though he gave an OK pass in the end, I think he should have been more aggressive. David Martinez Morales showed great anticipation in the box when he scored the 2-0 for Monagas. His finish on his right foot was excellent. The Venezuelan was capable of creating chances from deep. In the second half, he played a great over the top through pass to one of the Monagas attackers. It was another indication that David Martinez Morales possesses great vision.
Rating – A2
I am impressed by his technical, athletic and tactical ability. He seems to possess talent in each of those areas. Physically, it could be seen that he was pushed away from the ball quite easily still, but that is not a surprise for a 16-year-old. I think David Martinez Morales has the potential to play in Belgium in the future. There are a few key things that he needs to improve on based on this match. His final pass is very inconsistent, he needs to be more aggressive in defensive duels, his stamina and endurance to keep going in a game are not good enough yet and his crossing delivery is too inconsistent.
It often happens in Venezuela that young players get a chance in the first team too often, but with David Martinez Morales this is not the case. He was crowned as the man of the match and was one of the better players for Monagas in this match. I would like to see him on the right-wing in the next game. The Venezuelan could form a great duo on the right with Ivan Anderson, who likes to make overlapping runs. David Martinez Morales can create chances from deep areas but also be dangerous with his shots from long range.
Andrés Romero
- Nationality: Venezuelan
- Age: 19
- Date of birth: 07/03/2003
- Club: Monagas SC
- Career: Monagas SC
- Position: Central Midfield
- Secondary position: Attacking Midfield
- Preferred foot: Right
Andrés Romero played as a left central midfielder for Monagas against Zulia. He stands at 184cm and has a slim build. His movement is very fluid and he is quick in the first meters. Romero is also quick over longer distances and has good changes of direction. The Venezuelan sometimes was too late and not strong enough in the ground duels after stepping up. He stepped into the duel quite aggressively at times but his opponent shrugged him off quite easily. Andrés Romero should time his interception better and improve his full-body strength. In other ground duels, he wasn’t well-positioned and dribbled past quite often. After a few sloppy fouls (a handball and an unnecessary tackle), Andrés Romero received a yellow card. Throughout the match, he displayed many flaws in defence. However, the last time I saw him play he was still a winger so this should not be a big surprise.
On the ball, Andrés Romero showed quick-decision-making under pressure and occasionally played some good one-touch football, showing good technique and ball control. However, he sometimes was quite sloppy with his passing in midfield too. The Venezuelan did not show enough off-the-ball intensity in this match. It often happened that the full-backs had to play vertical passes towards the wings because Andres Romero wasn’t active enough and did not try to create passing angles for his teammates. He got into scoring position once this game after he made a good run in between both central defenders of Zulia. His first touch was great but Zulia’s defender made a foul but Romero did not get a penalty. Generally, Andrés Romero showed good technical ability throughout the match but did not get into enough situations in which he could show his technical ability.
Rating – B2
Andrés Romero showed many weaknesses in this match. First of all, I think he is not a central midfielder. With his frame and athletic ability, he is much more suited to the wing. I think he should play as a left-winger or right-winger. In this position, I don’t think he can play at a higher level soon. However, as a winger I think he could maybe make a transfer to the MLS in the future.
Óscar Jiménez
- Nationality: Venezuelan
- Age: 19
- Date of birth: 11/09/2002
- Club: Monagas
- Career: Deportivo La Guaira (Y), Monagas SC
- Position: Left-Back
- Preferred foot: Left
Óscar Jiménez played as Monagas’s left-back in the match against Zulia. Standing at 170 cm, the Venezuelan is quite short and has short legs. He has a normal build and is quick on the first few meters. Even though he has a small frame, Óscar Jiménez seemed capable of maintaining his speed over medium-long distances too. I predict that he won’t be capable of sprinting up and down the entire pitch for 90 minutes though, but as the Venezuelan league is quite a low-intensity league I can’t assess this right now. Óscar Jiménez managed to time his interceptions well. He also cut the passing lanes well. He showed defensive intelligence when he closed a gap towards the centre to dispossess a Zulia attacker. Generally, he defended quite well in this match and did not get into trouble. The Venezuelan might not be the strongest in the duels, but he has decent awareness and intelligence in defence.
When Óscar Jiménez was in possession near the halfway line on the left wing, he always took a few touches on the ball before playing a forward pass towards one of Monagas’s attackers. This was done at a low intensity because he had a lot of time on the ball. However, his passing technique is good and he was confident in playing difficult passes down the line. His crossing technique on the other hand wasn’t that great. It seemed like he tried to kick the ball at full power every time which decreased his technique and accuracy. Óscar Jiménez’s first touch when dealing with aerial passes is below average. He often fails to deal with them properly and loses possession. The left-back had a good eye for space and exploited this with good underlapping runs. He timed this well and had a big chance to either score or provide an assist in the 13th minute.
Rating – B2
I think Óscar Jimenez fits the playing style of Johnny Ferreira’s side quite well. It is not likely that he will become a left-back for the Venezuelan national team but he will reach a very respectable level and become one of the better left-backs in the Venezuelan league if he continues like this.