Federico Dimarco was just another forgotten boy of the Nerazzurri youth system but now, his performances are making many in football realise that he is one of the best left-wing backs in Italy, writes Richard Hall.
His brace against Bologna on Wednesday night was instrumental to Inter‘s 6-1 win and showcased his classic repertoire, including one of the deathliest left feet in the league.
Dimarco has become Inter’s regular starter on the left since Ivan Perisic left last summer and has been impressive in Serie A and Europe.
As Inter qualified from the ‘group of death’, containing Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Viktoria Plzen, Dimarco’s performances were arguably some of the best in the group.
“Progressing from a group like this isn’t for everyone,” the 24-year-old said after Inter’s win over Viktoria earlier this month.
“I think it was the most difficult group in the Champions League [this season], and we’re happy to have qualified for the Round of 16. Pressure is part of the game, but we didn’t blink in the face of the opposition, we just played our game.”
The maturity in the comments, along with the accolades of his performances, could make you believe that the young Italian has always been on the radar. This is not the case and his trajectory to performing consistently in Europe’s elite competition, as well as Serie A, causes an exciting debate within Italy.
When watching Dimarco shine for the Nerazzurri and Italy, one could think: why didn’t Inter start him earlier? After all, he is leaving Robin Gosens out of the team and he also pressed Ivan Perisic in the past.
Let’s be clear: he only became the player he was after his experiences. A Milan boy who featured once before going on loan to Ascoli, Empoli and Sion. Then it seemed like he had gone for good as he went to Parma and probably his most productive spell in Verona for Hellas.
These experiences made him the man he is today a; when I say man, he is 24 years of age. Now a national team member, he is showing that he could be one of Italy’s best prospects for years to come. He has everything: pace, strength, football intelligence both in attack and defence and a discipline and maturity that is similar to that of Nicolò Barella, Inter’s Capitan Futuro.
In weeks or months to come, many will be talking about the 5ft 9″ boy from Milan who is changing how wingbacks play. Why? Because once in the area, he has immense footwork and isn’t scared. His teammates love him and a measure of this is how many times he is involved in the celebrations.
His left foot could rival that of Andreas Brehme. Dimarco can take free kicks, corners, and penalties and his intelligent movements even helped him score headers by creeping in. Dimarco is developing rapidly in a team with highs and lows, giving Inzaghi a super-reliable option on the left where Perisic seemed irreplaceable only a few months ago.
A gun of a player and the best left back Italy has produced for some time. Since the start of this season, he has exploded and good to see it’s getting noticed now.
Another Italian player that was discarded and ignored for far too long.
hes as of today 25 years old
He has an absolute wand of a left foot, with so much variety and precision. It was infuriating that Inter were looking to offload him after impressing so much while at Verona. It’s so indicative as to how young Italians are viewed by many Italian clubs. As with most defenders, he’s only going to get stronger as he gets older and I look forward to seeing this.
One good thing Inzaghi did at Inter is bringing him from Verona, giving him first ream play and keeping him! And to those complaining he’s been ignored so long, chill up, he’s only 25 years old, and he needed some time to balance his game, there were times when his side was the most exposed and that costed inter so. impotant matches!
Dimarco is a liability on defense, often arriving late to the play and letting his man score basically unmarked. That’s the key reason Perisic was much more effective for Inter.
This guy is a beast and such a pleasure to watch. To think, Mancini barely used him at all and used Emerson instead.