"Better than Verratti and Jorginho" - Antonio Cassano lauds 'sensational footballer' who 'belongs to a club like Barcelona'

Sampdoria legend Antonio Cassano has claimed Stefano Sensi is better than Chelsea’s Jorginho and PSG’s Marco Verratti. He added that the midfielder belonged to an elite club like Barcelona.

Sensi joined Sampdoria on loan from Inter Milan in the recently-concluded January transfer window. The 26-year-old suffered a medial collateral ligament injury at the start of the season, missing a month of Serie A action. The reigning Italian champions could not make room for him on his return, which compelled him to look for a transfer.

He scored on his Serie A debut for Sampdoria, impressing Cassano. The former Italy international believes Sensi is the best midfielder in the country right now, even better than the Euro-winning duo of Verratti and Jorginho.

In an interview with Il Secolo XIX (via Football-Italia), the 39-year-old said:

“To me, Sensi is the best midfielder in Italy right now. He is a sensational footballer, and he deserves a top club. I think he is even better than (Manuel) Locatelli, Verratti or Jorginho. If I were Mancini, I wouldn’t think twice, and I’d gamble on him. Sensi’s only weak point was his fitness.”

The former striker drew parallels between ex-Barcelona midfielder Arthur and Sampdoria’s Sensi, adding:

“Sensi reminds me of Arthur. He (Arthur) is one of the best in the world right now, but maybe Juventus don’t know how to get the best out of him.”

“If we want to exaggerate, we can say that he (Arthur) has something similar to Xavi and Iniesta. Philosophically, Sensi belongs to a club like Barcelona.”

Sensi was included in Italy’s preliminary squad for the Euros, but failed to make the cut after picking up a muscle injury. Following his strong start at Sampdoria, it’ll be interesting to see if Roberto Mancini calls him up for Italy’s World Cup playoffs in March.

Anthony Martial reveals why he turned down Barcelona

Barcelona signed Ferran Torres, Adama Traore, Dani Alves and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the January transfer window. They were also heavily linked with Manchester United’s Anthony Martial, but the move did not materialize. Now, the Frenchman has revealed why that was the case.

The forward admitted that the Blaugrana did indeed get in touch with his agent. However, they couldn’t guarantee him regular game time. He chose Sevilla instead, who are likely to rely on him for the most important games of the season. The Manchester United loanee has already made his debut for the Andalusians, but couldn’t mark the occasion with a goal.