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#4 Manuel Locatelli (Midfielder, AC Milan)
Age: 19
Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Castacurta, Franco Baresi were all part of the famed Rossoneri academy. All these players went on to become an integral part of AC Milan's senior squad, one such player trying to become a part of this famed group is young midfielder Manuel Locatelli, who is currently making waves with his performances in Serie A.
Locatelli started his playing career at Atlanta before Milan scooped him up in 2009 at 11 years of age. He made it to the U19 squad at the age of 16 and represented them 30 times scoring 5 goals and providing 3 assists in that time.
Locatelli got promoted to the senior squad for the 15-16 season and made his senior debut on 21 April 2016 as a second-half substitute, since then he has become a regular and indispensable member of the squad making 28 appearances for Milan with 2 goals and 2 assists including the winner against Juventus.
A midfielder who prefers playing centrally, Locatelli is a defensive minded midfielder, usually given the task to shield the back four, recycle play in the midfield and initiate counter-attacks after the ball is won.
He is a very strong tackler and is extremely good in breaking up plays, is also a reliable passer of the ball with a pass completion rate of 81%. Locatelli also possesses a huge shot range, a fact which can be backed by his game winners against Sassuolo and Juventus.
Locatelli weaknesses are tied to his lack of physicality, his aerial ability is his biggest weakness, as he tends to lose most of his aerial duels. He isn't the strongest player on the field, and is bullied by stronger opposition players majority of the time. There is also room for improvement in the set piece taking department.
Due to the influx of new signings into the squad this season, Locatelli hasn't had many chances to play in the Serie A but Montella has given the youngster a go in the Europa League where in 3 appearances he has strung some impressive performances making 4 tackles and 3.3 interceptions per game while averaging 52 passes per game at a pass completion rate of 82.1%
Locatelli has been an important part of Italy's youth setup with appearances in their U15, U16, U17, U19 and U21 sides.
