In 2019, Amadou Dante moved from Yeelen Olympique to SK Sturm Graz, and the Malian then spent the 2019/20 season at TSV Hartberg. Back again, he blossomed into one of the best full-backs in the league — in 2020 Sturm extended the 21-year-old’s contract until 2024. Now, the club could lose him. According to reports, Sturm is said to have received a million-dollar offer from the MLS for Dante in the past.
“Yes, a club from the USA asked,” sports director Andreas Schicker confirms the offer to the Kronen Zeitung and adds: “But I have to talk to Amadou about it first. He has to want it, everything has to be right for us.”
Back then, the player himself wanted to stay in Graz because he felt very comfortable. He has now increased his market value with his first caps for Mali (against Congo and South Sudan) and will also be of interest to other leagues and clubs. So the plan should be for him to leave within a maximum of one more year.
This tactical analysis provides an in-depth scout report of Sturm Graz’s Amadou Dante and examines the 22-year-old’s playing style and characteristics. In addition to understanding how and where Dante plays, this analysis will also identify the style of tactics where he is most likely to thrive.
Amadou Dante Playing Role
Amadou Dante is an energetic and persistent left full-back who succeeds most at fulfilling his defensive duties. The Malian has plenty of speed, acceleration and stamina to get up and down the left flank. So, he can contribute to his team’s attacks as well as cover back to defend. Dante’s positioning and ability to defend in transition make him a valuable asset for his current club Sturm Graz. This is especially the case against teams who intend to open up the match and attack. A high level of consistency and reliability make Dante’s recent debut for the Mali senior national team well deserved.
Currently, Dante struggles when intending to play on the front foot and be more aggressive. At times, he allows attackers to get behind him too easily when he attempts to win the ball up in higher positions. Especially against inverted wingers, who cut inside, he has problems in defending. Particularly his crossing needs improvement when there is pressure. He can also improve his first touch.
His playing style suggests playing him in the role of ‘defensive back’. ‘Defensive backs’ are not regularly involved in attacking actions such as crossing, dribbling or build-up play.
Instead, they perform a high number of recoveries per match as well as pressures, tackles, fouls and duels. Advancing into the final third on the overlap is less likely for this type of player.
Amadou Dante Style Of Play
The Malian is very quick and accelerates to top speed rapidly. His excellent stamina enables him to contribute both in attack as well as in defence. This, again, can be seen in his heatmap. Dante has all the physical attributes to be a high-level wing-back.
However, he can still be dominated on aerial duels when covering the far post on crosses due to his lack of size. Dante also needs to be more efficient and effective in defensive duels and when attempting tackles. He often rushes into a tackle when keeping on both feet and waiting for a mistake made by the opponent would be the better option. In the following situation, Dante goes into a sliding tackle but is way too late. He cannot even stop the attacking player with a foul and therefore, opens up a big space for the opponent.
Amadou Dante Technical Abilities
Amadou Dante contributes to team build-ups with good short passing rather than long passes. He rarely commits passing errors in his end. As you can see in his pass map, most of his passes are played down the line so one of the strikers in Graz’s system can go directly in behind the defensive line.
One example can be seen down below. In the match against Serie A‘s Lazio in UEFA Europa League, Dante plays a long flat pass down the line. He overplays the midfield and defensive line of Lazio and Graz’s striker can directly move in behind the defensive line.
Therefore, Dante is often involved in his team’s own build-up phase and is trusted with starting Graz’s play from the backline. In the situation below, he receives the ball from the goalkeeper and has the task to play a pass down the line. So, it is possible for Graz to overplay break lines with few passes.
Additionally, he is a good dribbler who maintains high acceleration and speed when moving with the ball at his feet. In his map below, we can see that he often carries the ball with dribbles and also tries to get into the box often.
In crossing, Dante finds himself below average. Additionally, he struggles when attempting to strike accurate crosses on his first touch and is more error-prone in the attacking end when the pressure increases.
In the following situation, he provides a very good overlapping run and receives the ball. He attempts a cross with his first touch which is the right decision. However, he puts too much power into the cross.
Amadou Dante Tactical Abilities
Dante is excellent at defending in transition and when he is marking or reacting. He takes up good positions when the opposition attacks on the break and can cover multiple attackers and passing lanes due to his speed and positioning. The Malian picks his moments well when moving forward. Generally, he maintains the team shape in defence and attack and is not too adventurous.
In the match against Lazio, Dante uses his speed to get back into the back-four in defensive transition. Thanks to his stamina he has very high work rates in attack and defence. This is a very big advantage for his team. In this way, Graz can be in numerical advantage in a defensive transition.
After this run, Dante can intercept a dangerous pass in their own box and therefore, denies a goal against his team. His positioning and movement are very smart.
Occasionally, Dante is too aggressive when engaging opposing ball handlers. The left-back is better when he is anticipating and maintaining his position rather than when he attempts to press.
Amadou Dante Future Potential
All in all, Dante is a steady and consistent player who is reliable in defence. He does not attempt to play beyond his abilities. Additionally, he has gradually progressed since moving to European football and continues to improve as he gains more experience. He may have little potential to improve at this point.
Dante’s new club should play in a league without the highest speed of play: Major League Soccer, Serie A, La Liga or Ligue 1. Dante’s new club should focus on defensive work. Dante’s smart movement in transitions and his long progressive passes fit a team with strengths in attacking transitions. In one of the top 5-leagues, the team should preferably play with a back-four. A compact system with two strikers might be a very good option. In the MLS, Dante might take the next step in his attacking skills by playing as a wingback in a system with a back-three/back-five.
Conclusion
Dante is excellent at taking up good positions and reacting when the ball is played towards his area to make interceptions. His interception statistics are among the best in Austria’s top division because of his speed, which along with his stamina allows him to constantly be involved whenever the ball comes to the left flank.
However, to graduate to a higher level Dante will need to be even more efficient in shutting down opposition players on the ball. His defensive duel-winning percentage indicates that his tackling is not at the standard needed in a major European league at this point. At this point, Dante is a defensive-oriented player who needs to continue improving his ability when moving forward. His crossing accuracy percentage is quite poor but it is a bit deceiving. Dante looks to put his crosses into a general area rather than attempting to pick out a specific target and the result is that many of his services do not connect with teammates. For a team like Sturm Graz that competes at the top of the Austrian Bundesliga, these weaknesses are not apparent in domestic league play but are a reason why Sturm Graz struggle to score in the UEFA Europa League with an unbalanced attack.
The one thing that stands out about Amadou Dante is how steady and reliable he is in many areas. Dante is at an advanced level when taking up defensive positions and defending on the break, attributes that are very valuable for a fullback or wingback when shutting down opposition attacks. His gradual improvement since arriving from Malian football as a 19-year-old is clear and Dante has earned his status as a regular starter for a club that competes in international UEFA competitions. His consistency and reliability are great attributes but it is difficult to see him increasing his attacking ability to the point where he becomes a threat when moving forward on the left flank. Dante is playing at a good level for his abilities right now but he will need to improve his crossing when playing at a higher speed of play.
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