Edwin Zepeda is a 16-year-old Nicaraguan attacker for Managua FC. He made his first team debut last August, aged 15, and got his first national team call-up in February for the CONCACAF U17 Championship. Zepeda has earned 4 caps since then, recording 2 goals and an assist. For Managua, he has appeared 15 times in Liga Primera Apertura, scoring 6 goals and adding an assist. He has appeared in all their playoff matches but has gone scoreless, like in his lone Central American Cup start.
Zepeda is quite short, standing at around 1.65 m. Despite his stature, his frame is mature for his age and sturdy, having broad shoulders and being somewhat stocky already. He is strong for his age, and he puts it to use in duels, even when outmatched. His broad frame and strength allow him to box opponents off the ball, especially with his back to goal. His physicality is promising, given the maturity of his frame and willingness to invite contact despite a clear height disadvantage. Zepeda is not effective aerially due to his height, though he competes well in those duels. In terms of pace, he is pretty explosive on initial burst but lacks top-end speed over long distances. He must also work on his fitness so that he can more consistently complete 90s.
Zepeda has operated from multiple attacking positions, primarily as a right inside forward or winger, cutting inside on his dominant left foot. He can also play striker, but will likely slot in as a no. 10 when moving abroad. In possession, Zepeda consistently shows short centrally or in the half spaces to link play, comfortably receiving progressive passing with his back to goal and/or on a half turn while being able to use his chest to control when needed. He is most effective attacking space 1v1 with his explosive first step rather than with dribbling technique, though he keeps tight control while dribbling backward or laterally wide to draw in pressure. Zepeda often uses feints on the dribble to create separation before getting into progressive actions. He frequently combines play with one- and two- touch layoffs, almost exclusively using his dominant foot. Additionally, he is regularly able to play over and underlaps in stride with anticipation, displaying his decent preemptive scanning. His distribution stays on the ground, even on switches of play, having the situational awareness to know when to spread play wide from central areas. Though he shows a considerable range of distribution, he does not really go diagonal, preferring to go laterally, not getting too risky. He is creative and rapid enough with his ball releases for this level, but he is inconsistent approaching the final third at this moment. Zepeda’s through balls up the half spaces need better execution, especially under pressure. His decision-making must also catch up in that zone, as it is not as consistent as in link-up. The pressure of the final third can also limit his end product, with his dribbling being less confident than what he exudes when cutting inside explosively on the half turn from the middle third.
Regarding off-ball movement and finishing, it should be noted that all but one of Zepeda’s goals came against opponents in the bottom three places of the league (he did score against domestic giant Real Estelí FC). He is quick to react to possession regain by breaking forward ahead of counters immediately. His runs came in a great variety, providing both underlaps and overlaps on attacks up his wing. Once in the final third, Zepeda consistently makes trailing runs into the top of the box or the near post, looking for cutbacks. He must work on his box instincts and timing of his runs, though, as he does not receive much service due to a lack of separation created. As a finisher, most of his looks come when creating for himself on the ball, cutting inside and putting in a decent volume of long shots. Due to his hesitant decision-making in the final third, several of his shots are blocked or do not have enough power behind them. He must clean up his technique and decisiveness to improve his end product, though his instincts are just good enough to allow him to tap in rebound opportunities.
Zepeda is a high work rate presser, sprinting to close space from behind while coming in at good angles to stop carries and force back passes. He does get too aggressive at times, grabbing or being a bit out of control, resulting in fouls. On the contrary, he does not lunge in and gets tight to contain, so it is an area of his game that can be cleaned up and become a strength.
With his teammates quickly gaining confidence in him at a young age, an impressive goal record, and a strong physical profile, Zepeda has bags of potential to fulfill. He must improve his final third contributions and decision-making under pressure, but his strengths in link-up play and off-ball movement give him a useful base to continue improving upon. When he turns 18 in a couple of years, it will be paramount that he moves abroad to maximize his development with better coaching, whether that be on loan to an academy in Spain or permanently to an MLS or Liga MX club.
Target Scouting 