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VLAHOVIC’S TIME TO SHINE

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With the Premier League starting this week, the teams are ready to fight for the throne of England’s top-flight. While outfits like Manchester City and Manchester United used the summer window in their favour, a few teams are still looking for replacements. Fiorentina striker Dusan Vlahovic has attracted attention across Europe and could be making a switch to the Premier League.

 

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Vlahovic is a Serbian striker who plays for Italian giants Fiorentina. A guaranteed 15-goals-a-season striker, the Serbian could conquer England’s biggest competition with his dribbling ability and his sheer intelligence. What are the Serbian’s strengths and how is Dusan Vlahovic a useful asset?

 

THE YOUNG SERB

After enrolling in the youth academy, the Serb was elevated to the first squad and made his first SuperLiga appearance at the age of 16, being Partizan’s youngest debutant ever. Vlahovic netted his first professional goal for Partizan versus Radnik Surdulica less than two months later, making him the club’s youngest player ever to strike the net. Many renowned European clubs, notably Arsenal, Juventus, and Anderlecht, were interested in Vlahovic’s emerging star, but Partizan’s administration initially rejected all first proposals. Nonetheless, the Serb’s departure from his beloved side was unavoidable.

In 2017, Italian club Fiorentina came knocking to capture Vlahovic’s signature. And since his departure to Italy, the Serbian striker has been a reckoning force leading his team’s frontline.

STRENGTHS

VLAHVIC’S INTELLIGENCE

Vlahovic is a 21-year-old Serbian striker who competes for Fiorentina in Italy. After proving his worth in 2018, the 190 cm tall forward is now in his third spell in Italy’s elite division. Despite his stature, the Serb isn’t your traditional “big man” striker, as soccer spectators and pundits have come to expect in the past. The 21-year-old offers distinctive expertise that blends the abilities of a nimble attacker with those of a striker who depends heavily on his power and muscular prowess.

 

Thus, such a combination massively increases his ceiling of becoming an all-around centre-forward who can do a bit of everything, rather than just being a typical poacher with no other notable qualities to his game.

Vlahovic’s physical prowess and height enable the forward to retain the ball and be in complete control, provide a persistent aerial danger during free kicks, and serve as a central striker for deliveries into the opposition’s goalmouth. The Serb then introduces his second portion of the game, which is more typical with smaller strikers. The component of Vlahovic’s game that provides the Fiorentina striker so much promise to push his career to the next level is his very clean movement and solid dribbling ability, which stands out for a guy of his dimensions.

THE SERB’S DRIBBLING ABILITY

With the talented Serbian shifting out broad to the flank and making unexpected and creative dashes, he finds himself in a lot of one-on-one situations with opposing players. The attacker aspires to be in these situations since he is technically gifted and a superb dribbler. Vlahovic bets on himself to go past an opponent by averaging 1.11 dribbles each game, and he has an excellent track record, winning 59.3 per cent of the time.

 

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When the Fiorentina striker outpaces his marker, he looks for a teammate in the centre or plays a threatening ball. The Serbian is currently being chased by Spurs and Gunners, and if he joins either of the North London outfits, Vlahovic could demolish Premier League’s defences with his stunning dribbling ability.

SHOOTING PROWESS

After reviewing Dusan Vlahovic’s general characteristics, it’s vital to highlight the most significant quality of any forward, independent of other attributes: shooting and goal-scoring efficiency. A centre-forward who is not prolific, no matter how wonderful his other aspects of the sport are, might be a burden on the squad, and the Fiorentina player has never let his squad down in this regard. With 21 goals last summer, Dusan Vlahovic was considered in the same bracket as Romelu Lukaku and Cristiano Ronaldo. Dusan Vlahovic took 2.62 shots every game out of which 1.05 were on target.

 

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The 21-year-old is definitely a natural goal scorer, competent in scoring in a number of scenarios and with a diverse striking technique. Vlahovic’s inherent desire to score goals is complemented by his very crisp and efficient scoring style, as the striker is capable of bending attempts, thundering powerful smashes with his shoestrings, and perfectly finding the back of the net with either side of his feet. Furthermore, the Fiorentina striker has an exceptional instinct for the target and does not require much time to get a shot away.

 

THE CHASERS

The two armies who could bolster their attacks with Vlahovic’s presence are Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspurs. Nuno Espírito Santos is on the verge of losing his star-striker Harry Kane. With the English forward continuously expressing his desire to leave, Spurs need to hunt for a striker in the transfer market. The Serbian could be the perfect fit in Spurs’ puzzle with the North London outfit looking to stage a comeback season.

 

 

But according to reports coming out of Italy, Vlahovic will only be sold for a price of 60 million euros or above by Fiorentina. And the price tag attached to Vlahovic’s name hints at a transfer to the Premier League. Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal could also chip in with a bid after reports claimed that the Spaniard was interested in Argentine striker Lautaro Martinez.

 

 

With the transfer window ending soon and the summer of Premier League preparing to kick off this week, Mikel Arteta and Nuno Santos will have to come to a decision. The Serbian could add the flamboyance to the Premier League with his arrival but who captures his signature we wait and see.

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