Upcoming youngsters in Italian Serie A - Part 3
Davide Astori:
Born: January 7, 1987
Club: Cagliari (co-owned by A.C. Milan)
Nationality: Italian
Position: Centre-back
The 6 ft tall defender is described as a defensive wall. The 23 year old Italian is physically strong and has a great jump along with his tall frame. Davide Astori has proven to be a composed defender and has kept some of the best Serie A strikers at bay
for entire games. The youngster is a great reader of the game and can quickly read passages of the play with quick reactions. His imposing presence allows him to stand up to tricky strikers.
The 23 year old is always there for a well-timed intervention and bosses the defensive line with great intelligence. The Italian has a good basic technique on the ball and usually avoids making basic errors. His awareness to minimize the opposition’s threat
is something that the youngster has learnt quickly. This attribute has made him one of the hottest prospects in Serie A.
Astori’s biggest strength is his formidable presence, a barrier that is a daunting task for the best in Italy to go through. But the Cagliari number 13 is occasionally prone to judgment errors and whenever he gets too close to opponents, gives away unnecessary
fouls.
Having good physical and technical attributes make him well placed at centre back position where the Italian is confident and at home. For Cagliari, Davide Astori plays at left centre-back position and leads the defensive line and prefers making interceptions
rather than pressing and forcing attackers to make mistakes.
His playing style has been likened to Alessandro Nesta and the youngster himself takes inspiration from the A.C. Milan defender. The Italian defender had a tricky introduction to life in Serie A during the 2008-09 season but last season, Astori improved
a lot in terms of positioning himself better and in relation to his colleagues.
A lot of areas in his game need to be worked on as Astori still gets caught out of position and leaves defensive gaps that are sometimes exploited by the attackers. The youngster needs to work more in order to make most of his height that he still not utilizes
in set-plays both offensively and defensively.
Astori is a natural leader, not only on the pitch through his physical presence, but also off the pitch due to his grounded and focused lifestyle. The highly motivated youngster is confident in himself and is willing to take on the best of the best in Italy
without hesitation. Davide Astori aspires to play for A.C. Milan, a club he supported as a boy and through his modesty, is willing to give whatever it takes for both Cagliari and for Milan, if the opportunity comes knocking at his door.
A.C. Milan coach, Massimiliano Allegri is a great admirer of the Cagliari man and has worked closely with the youngster during his time at Palermo. He has already been tipped off for a return to Milan after the end of this season and with Milan having a
lot of defensive problems with an ageing backline, and if this season is another good one for Astori, it is for sure that Milan would not want to miss a chance to sign the Italian who is valued at around €10 million at Cagliari. Davide Astori would also want
to have a good season under his belt to have a chance to link up with his dream club next season.
Davide Astori is still 23 and learning the game. He has a lot of time to improve on the few shortcomings that come along with every good upcoming youngster. He even has a chance to play for Italian national squad so he has an extra motivational factor that
will help him in achieving his ambitions.
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