Omar Correia is a 187 cm French and Senegalese defensive midfielder for US Triestina in Italy’s Serie C. The 2000-born summer signing from FC Koper in Slovenia was developed at PSG and Le Havre. At time of writing, the right footer has made 22 appearances in group A with 2 assists and 6 yellow cards.
Correia is a physically dominant midfielder that makes use of his frame as often as possible. His strength is above the rest for this level, but his body control needs work, both of which show up in duels. Additionally, he is an excellent leaper and that allows him to be a reliable force in aerial duels, winning headers to clear his lines or intercept direct kicks. Correia is a hard-working player with average pace that is elevated by his long strides. This allows him to cover lots of space in midfield while defending off ball while closing space on progressive carriers on counters with ease due to his relentless nature.
Defensively, Correia is an aggressive midfield destroyer who stalks his marker with intent. This leads to ground duels relying on his physicality multiple times each match with varying success. He will either come away fouling his opponent or boasting an impressive win. Though his use of frame and strength in duels is a marvel, his defensive technique and timing must improve. After winning possession back, his decision making is quick to clear danger or play it short to begin the buildup. Furthermore, defensive instincts lead him to grabbing some interceptions with admirable anticipation of line breaking passes. Off ball, his hard work centrally helps lead to these anticipatory plays along with attentive marking with his head on a swivel.
The €675K signing is not just a defensive stalwart for the third-placed Italian club, he has a developing attacking skillset, too. His first touch and decision making on ball is inconsistent and sometimes poor, but his vision and progressive mindset as a deep-lying playmaker has created some valuable chances for his squad. Correia loves to break lines on the ground with his dominant foot (his weaker left is seldom used), and that provides needed progression up the spine of the pitch for Triestina. He has even showed improvement in dealing with pressure in tighter spaces of the pitch, as he makes quick decisions to pass into the box when moving farther up field in support of the attack. One pass under pressure included an outside the boot delivery to set up a tap in to tie against Novara. His progressive tendencies on the attack can be a fault, as it leads to some poor decisions to pass through with lots of bodies in the way. The last thing to note about his attacking play is his dribbling. Correia does well to progressive carry with space but lacks the technique to properly evade pressure.
US Triestina’s key summer signing is far from a finished product and is nearly 24, though there are several traits that could make him valuable in better leagues. Correia has already played topflight football in Slovenia and would have no problem adapting to Italian Serie B. The question is whether there is enough time for him to refine into a top 5-7 league player. Judging by how hard he works on the pitch, Correia has the mentality to develop into that.
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