Denil Castillo is an 18-year-old (24/03/2004) defensive midfielder who plays for LDU Quito under 19. The Ecuadorian youngster was already included in the matchday squad for LDU Quito but did not make his debut yet. Castillo mainly plays for the under 19’s, playing 15 matches for LDU Quito under 19 in 2022. The 18-year-old is also a under 20 youth international for Ecuador. Denil Castillo needs to work on a lot of aspects, but has a lot of potential if coached well.
What stands out when watching Denil Castillo is that he is very tall standing at approximately 1.92 meters. He has a slim build and very long legs. Castillo, despite his tall but skinny frame, has very good footwork and is relatively agile. He is also very quick on the first meters and maintains that speed over long distances. The midfielder needs to work on his body and leg strength though, as he sometimes gets outmuscled in physical duels. His long legs allow Castillo to snatch the ball of the opponent in some ground duels though, but it is important that he gains muscle mass in order to become more effective in these duels. The Ecuadorian youngster plays with high intensity defensively, also positioning himself pretty well and making the right decisions. Denil Castillo also has decent mentality, composing himself well after making a mistake.
Either playing as the sole defensive midfielder or as one of the two holding midfielders, Denil Castillo often sees a lot of the ball in first-phase possession considering that LDU Quito’s youth teams often dominate possession. The Ecuadorian youngster generally has a lot of time on the ball. However, his technique is too inconsistent at this point in his career to get a lot of minutes for the first team. Castillo’s decision-making in possession is also questionable at times. Denil Castillo does have moments in which he dribbles past his opponent using his good footwork, speed and agility, but in other situations he struggles to control the ball well while dribbling. The same applies to his short and long passing. He has the capability to spread the play or to play powerful passes into the attack, but is still too inconsistent.
Denil Castillo has a really interesting profile because of his tall frame combined with his good athleticism and footwork, but he needs to develop his physique, become more consistent technically and improve his decision-making. With that being said, the defensive midfielder would be a good low-risk signing for the better reserves teams in the Belgian league with the right guidance. I think that he could be coached into a really good defensive midfielder, but I doubt that LDU Quito is the place to be for that.
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