PERFORMANCE OVERVIEW

This report was created in December 2022

PHYSICAL

Sergino Dest stands at 5’9″ with a slim fit build. Physically, he handled himself very well against all contacts keeping his balance and not going down easily. He showed very explosive acceleration and overall speed, allowing him to be one of the fastest players on the pitch. He showed great agility and had the ability to change directions quickly while marking opponents. One of the best characteristics he had was his work rate during this match. He constantly pressed hard, giving his opponents little to no chance of reacting.

TECHNICAL

Sergino Dest has excellent first-touch abilities. His quick frame allowed him to perform well under give-and-go situations. The majority of his touches in this game all came from short passes. Dest did not attempt any long balls and would only look to play his center-back or winger. He is a confident dribbler and looked most comfortable when spread out on the sideline. Dest did not look like a risk-taker, he played simple and only made the appropriate passes needed to keep possession of the ball.

TACTICAL

According to statistical ratings of the game from various sources, Dest averaged a score of around 5.8 out of 10. Tactically speaking, Dest looked to have accomplished what his manager asked of him. It was clear from the start that Dest was in charge of man-marking Mbappe. This was no surprise he was chosen to mark him as Dest performed well in terms of keeping up to speed with Mbappe’s runs. Although his man-marking was great, he did seem to lack situational awareness in marking off the ball. Occasionally, he would drift towards the middle colliding too close with his center back and at one point Mbappe scored the second goal due to him losing his mark.

PSYCHOLOGICAL

Dest showed to remain calm on and off the ball. He showed no signs of frustration and kept his composure. He seemed to lack signs of communication with his center back when they had possession. Many times, he was wide open and his center-back decided to switch the play. He could improve on his confidence to ask for the ball.

CONCLUSION

Dest looked to have completed what his manager asked of him. His statistical rating on paper did not show what was physically seen in the game with his off-the-ball movements. It looked clear from the start that Dest was the designated man to keep a close eye on Mbappe. I believe this tactic caused Dest to play more defensively as he had chances to move up but would stay back. Tactically, it showed that Barcelona’s game plan was not to use Dest’s side to attack as that is where Mbappe played most of the game. Barcelona attacked the majority of the game from the left wing. This also gave Barcelona’s right wing (Dembele) very few chances throughout the game. Overall, Dest looked like a true natural right back. Fast on and off the ball. He lacked situational awareness but that is an aspect of the game that can be improved upon. In terms of attacking, there were minimal attacking opportunities for Dest. He also stayed back and defended at center field during all of Barcelona’s set pieces. Further analysis of a game where he isn’t strategically placed to defend all game is needed to analyze offensive movements.