In the 25th round of the Brasileirão, Luiz Felipe Scolari and Fernando Diniz clashed in another of the fantastic games that the country of football gives us. As expected, Flu was the team in charge of the match, having dominated possession and managed to create many finishing situations. However, not all are good quality. CAP, as usual of Scolari, defended with the offensive transition. They kept aggressive pressure on Diniz’s functional game and managed to get good chances, mainly through Pedrinho and Pablo, who would end up scoring and finalizing the result.
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
Pedro “Pedrinho” Pereira
- Nationality: Brazilian
- Age: 20
- Date of Birth: 11/07/2002
- Club: Club Athletico Paranaense
- Career: EC Vitória, Club Athletico Paranaense
- Position: Left-Back
- Preferred Foot: Left
Pedrinho is a left-back who can play any position on the pitch, especially in the central corridor. His low center of gravity – he measures 1.77 meters – gives him a different “ginga” from all the players around him and allows him to differentiate, especially with the ball. Pedrinho is art in movement, which was evident by the ease with which he could step into the central corridor and play with the same ease as he did in the side corridor.
On the ball, the youngster born in 2002 never hides to be the protagonist. Hiding in maximum amplitude on the opposite side of the FC Fluminense pressure, Pedrinho always received with numerical advantage – countless 1×1 situations with Samuel Xavier-, which allowed him to dribble the opponent and take crosses, which proved to be tense and very placed. Indeed, through those crosses, he made two key passes and created a tremendous goal-scoring opportunity for Pablo to finish with a header.
In the defensive moment, some gaps were notorious. In anticipation and containment, the player was often late to get close to the ball carrier. However, that may have to do with the context of the medium-low block in which he was inserted. Travelling longer to reach the ball carrier may have influenced the mentioned problem. Defending depth was another problem revealed, with Fluminense getting into his back a few times.
It was related to the excellent crossing technique that Pedrinho reveals. It was also evidence of his quality in set-pieces, especially in the offensive corners beaten on the right side, which always came out with enough quality and facilitated the task of who attacks the ball.
Rating – A2
By improving his defensive behaviour, Pedrinho has severe conditions to become a top defender. Waiting for Abner to leave to grab the place and add minutes continuously should be the first step for the young Brazilian to dream of reaching new heights. A move to a European club that favours youngsters and attacking football, such as AFC Ajax, could be a good move. From then on, it would be up to Pedrinho to dream and work to reach the highest levels of football.