| Name: Juan Sforza | Date of birth: 14/02/2002 |
| Position: DM | Preferred foot: Left |
| Nationality: Argentinian | Club: Vasco da Gama (Newell’s Old Boys) |
| Contract until: 31/12/2028 | Competition: Serie A (Superliga) |
| International: Argentina U-23 | Agency: Primotempo |
Report:
Juan Sforza stands at 1.78m with a slightly slim build. He does not seem very strong in physical duels as he loses balance quite easily, especially in duels with his back towards the goal. Sforza uses his body efficiently in some duels to draw fouls or to shield the ball. He is combative and battles well in physical duels despite not being the strongest. Sforza has a decent burst of speed and displays decent speed over longer distances. He has inconsistent footwork.
He has good off-the-ball movement in first- and second-phase possession, recognizing where the space is after scanning. Sforza has a decent but not great touch under pressure with both feet. He sometimes lets the ball bounce off his foot and fails to keep the ball close to him. His first-time passes under pressure are below average and sloppy. Sforza generally is a bit sloppy passing through tight gaps and playing line-breaking passes. He often plays it safe and does not take many risks. The passes with his right foot are quite clean, although he is very safe with his right-footed passing. Sforza has a nice long passing technique with his left foot but his weight of passing is quite inconsistent. His pass selection is sometimes quite poor.
Despite scanning before receiving, Sforza does not always make the right decision. He sometimes thinks he has less time than he actually has or fails to receive on the half-turn. This can lead to rushed decisions. He sometimes showcases average footwork under pressure too. He gets away with his in the Argentinian league but would struggle in a higher-tempo league. Sforza sometimes needs too much time on the ball. Sforza’s ball-striking from range is decent but inconsistent. He strikes the ball with power but often lacks accuracy. His anticipation in the box is good. Sforza scored a few goals after being in the right place at the right time.
Sforza has decent defensive positioning and vision. He generally makes the right decisions in transition but the timing of his slide tackling is average, giving away free-kicks. Sforza often scans and adjusts his position accordingly. He manages to disrupt opponents in transition by blocking passing lanes. Sforza also gets into the right positions to pick up second balls or to disrupt his opponents in the final third but fails to win many duels due to his lack of strength. However, his tenacity and persistence help him to disrupt the opponent sufficiently in certain duels. His defensive positioning in the box is good. Sforza clears crosses well and is always attentive defending in the box. He sporadically makes mistakes defensively after failing to track a run after he failed to win the duel.
At the time of writing, Juan Sforza just completed a €4.6m move to Vasco da Gama in the Brazilian Serie A. This is a good move for him, as he is not ready to move to a club in the top 5 leagues. He needs to work on his physical level, consistency on the ball, pass selection and decision-making in first-phase possession. I doubt whether he would ever become an interesting target for clubs battling for European football in the top 5 leagues, but he could become a target for clubs in Belgium in two to three years.
Target Scouting 