Development within football is never linear. There is no one way for footballers to develop to reach the top of the game and, at times, players do not show their true ability or potential until they are in an environment, with the right club and coach, to allow them to do so.

This was famously the case with the Leicester City and England international forward Jamie Vardy who had played non-league football before moving to Fleetwood Town and then Leicester City. Vardy ended up leading Leicester to the Premier League title and playing for England. Since then, of course, the whole footballing world has been looking for the next Jamie Vardy in their respective leagues.

The reality is, though, that finding a player in non-league football that can make an impact at the top level is extremely difficult. Instead, we are more likely to find a player who can play at the highest level closer to that stage already. Players who are already at clubs in the top-flight but for whatever reason are yet to really push on as they edge towards their mid-20s.

This is the case for the subject of this article, the 23-year-old Italian wide attacker Riccardo Sottil of Fiorentina. Sottil is a tall (listed at 180cm | 6’), right-footed attacking player who likes to play off of the left but is comfortable playing across the pitch. He does not possess top-level pace but his movement — as he comes in and out of pockets of space and then operates on the blind side of opposition defenders — allows him to gain an advantage.

Sottil is actually the son of the current Udinese coach, Andrea Sottil, who is actually also featuring in this month’s magazine, and it is fair to say that Riccardo grew up in football. He has been quoted previously as saying that “football is life”, and it is his work ethic and willingness to prove himself that has seen the winger develop into a key first-team player for Fiorentina under Vincenzo Italiano.

Player profile

This pizza chart shows Sottil’s output as compared to other wingers so far this season in Serie A. All data is from Wyscout, and per 90 data is converted to percentile rankings.

So far this season, he is in the 75th percentile for goal contributions but only the 52nd percentile for expected goal contributions. He is also in the 71st percentile for shots per 90 but interestingly he is in the 92nd percentile for the % of shots taken that are on target. Sottil is a dynamic ball carrier and is in the 98th percentile for carries and the 79th percentile for progressive actions. He also gets the ball into the area effectively and he is in the 86th percentile for area entries.

These two charts, a heatmap and a progressive carry map, give us an insight into the kind of areas in which Sottil tends to operate and how he likes to attack the area. He is naturally right-footed but will play from the left side of the attack. Positionally, within that, he is flexible and will not just look to hold a wide position to receive on the outside of the opposition full-back. He likes to drop into the half-spaces, finding pockets in which he can receive the ball from deeper teammates.

When in possession in these areas, he is a real threat to attack through direct runs as he looks to attack the penalty area from an angle.

He is also, however, a threat to find line breaking passes from deeper areas.

Creative passing

Riccardo Sottil has developed into an extremely creative player from deeper positions. He sees the game very well and his ability to drop into pockets of space to receive the ball from deeper teammates means that he can act as the link player between the defensive third and the attacking third for Fiorentina.

Sottil is an aggressive attacking player. His first thought when taking possession of the ball is to find a way to progress into dangerous areas, whether that is via a dribble or a pass. He is not a player who will typically just receive and then look to link the play, instead, he will aggressively look to get turned and play beyond the next line of the opposition defence.

We see an example of this here, as Sottil takes possession in his own half in the match against Juventus. Fiorentina are attacking here in transition and as such, the game is stretched open. These are situations when Sottil is at his most dangerous, with his ability to find space allowing him to get on the ball without direct contact from the opposition defenders.

As he takes the ball here and gets turned, he then has the quality and vision to break the next line with a driven through ball that breaks the last line and sends the forward through on goal.

This time we see a more typical position for Sottil to have possession of the ball and this example comes from the Italian winger’s loan spell with Cagliari.

As you can see, he has possession wide and there are a lot of players between him and the goal. Sottil does not force the ball in this situation but also does not turn and check the ball backwards. Instead, he pauses on the ball and slows the game down as he waits for teammates to make movements ahead of the ball to open up passing lanes.

As the striker makes a diagonal movement towards the near side corner of the penalty area, we see Sottil clip a through ball with the outside of his right foot that is angled perfectly into the feet of the striker.

Delivery from wide areas

As we have already seen in the player profile section of this article, Riccardo Sottil is in the 98th percentile for carries and the 86th percentile for area entries. When receiving the ball in wide areas, he is a real threat to drive at the opposition defender and then look to find ways to access the penalty area. He can do this through carries into the area or when looking to create a yard of space before getting crosses into the centre.

We see an example here of Sottil choosing to attack the opposition fullback on the outside. Even though the Italian winger is naturally right-footed, he is still capable of crossing with accuracy on his left-foot while on the run.

As he attacks the defender in this game, he performs a step-over to create some space and then, as he reaches the touchline, he clips the ball high to the near post to meet the run of the central player for an easy chance on goal.

Riccardo Sottil is also a wide player who has the vision to play more difficult crosses. He rarely just puts the ball into an area in the hope that someone will be in position to attack the cross. Instead, he finds teammates who are making intelligent runs centrally.

We see this here, with Sottil in possession in the wide areas. This time, he threatened to go down the outside but then checked back inside on his stronger foot. As he crosses the ball, he does so with a low trajectory across the face of goal as the near-side player for Fiorentina makes an aggressive move toward the ball.

1v1 Dribbling

Even though Sottil is not a wide attacker who is blessed with absolute pace, he is more than capable of beating a man while dribbling with the ball. He can take possession of the ball and then beat a player on the inside or the outside, and even when closely marked, he has the balance and agility to comfortably outplay defensive players.

Here, we see an example when Sottil receives the ball on the outside of the opposition full-back. As the opposition player comes to close down the ball and looks to engage the winger, we see Sottil receive and instantly twist and open his hips as he pushes the ball past the defender and drives into space.

This time, Sottil received the ball on the opposite side of the pitch with one defender looking to close him down and another offering cover. Sottil feints to go on the outside of the defender before quickly cutting back inside. Before he even makes his first move, however, he slows the pace down and forces the defender to slow.

Now Sottil cuts inside and then drives through the gap between two defenders and accesses the penalty area.

Conclusion

At 23 years old, Riccardo Sottil has developed into an extremely important player at first-team level for Fiorentina. He is yet to make an appearance for the senior Italian national team but it certainly will not be long before he is part of the squad.

There have already been links to the likes of Brighton and Southampton in England, and Sottil’s profile and performances are sure to attract transfer speculation at the end of this season.