How PSG has just recruited the player to make him win the Champions League to Leandro Paredes

Leandro Paredes left last summer to move from Zen to Zenit. Of course, there is a background story of this shock movement and that is, to be honest, as simple as possible. The Roma needed the money to respect the restrictions imposed by the FFP, Zenit had money and the agreement had been reached. Of course, that's not why this deal shocked Roma fans. It's the name of the buyer that caused the confusion. Everyone was ready to see Paredes leave, but no one expected to see him leave for Russia. Juventus, Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund all wanted to sign Paredes, but Zenit won.

And now, a year and a half later, he is moving again, this time to Paris. Thomas Tuchel, the same guy who wanted him to Borussia Dortmund and who was short of money, finally got the player he wanted so much. PSG will pay around 40 million euros, including seven bonuses, for the multi-purpose midfielder.

Use the luxury of playing in Russia

Paredes is a rare mix of attack instinct and defensive solidity, coupled with the mental toughness and attitude that make him a relentless opponent. His equally powerful game with or without a ball and his vision are simply ecstatic for a real football fan. He is also able to play the ball long and short, but his long balls, which add to his vision, are his greatest strength.

As Piotr Foot, to whom I borrowed this screen capture, has noticed, his long balls are even better than what we could expect. Most of them are very risky and sometimes too long for the broadcast director to put them on the scene in time. In addition, we must not forget that he plays in Russia, a league in which many technicians would not be kind enough to do. One thing is particularly pleasant in his game and it is also one of the reasons why the PSG pays him nearly 50 million euros. He almost never plays the ball in the back. Leandro Paredes is, to the extent possible, a definition of progressive football.

Conduct the orchestra

Above, we can see him as the team's biggest game maker, a role he plays due to Zenit's lack of pbad quality for positions in the center of the back. Otherwise, he would play 15-20 meters forward, which surely awaits him in Paris. There is not much movement on his part in the preparation phase and this could be a problem in Ligue 1. In Russia, he plays this way, playing the central role of the construction of Zenit but in Paris, for most games, this will not be possible due to the nature of the opponents. The Ligue 1 teams tend to exert stronger pressure than the Russian Premier League teams, which will surely push him to intensify his movements when he will need to accept the pbad and play forward. .

Another sore point on which Leandro Paredes must continue to improve: discipline. He's an Argentinian, he loves to fight, he knows how to provoke, but he also knows that he has to channel himself. On this point also, the Zenit player has improved considerably for 2 years.

He plays similarly to Javier Mascherano when he played at the base of Liverpool midfielder before converting to the center of defense after a trip to Barcelona, ​​but he is also far better ballooning. In addition, his vision and awareness allow him to minimize his lack of movement while reinforcing the attack. You can not watch Paredes without shouting "how does he see that" on the screen? He's just that good.

Thomas Tuchel kind of player

Paredes proves that, when ramping up, he is intentionally slow in running, simply because he knows he can do it that way. The speed that Paredes covers in the middle space is excellent and it shows the intelligence of staying on his feet in the challenge and getting away from his immediate opponent as soon as he wins the ball .

This particular skill is of vital importance to him since he plays the role of playmaker in depth, with many manners and features of the midfield. If you want to be able to fight all the time, you must also choose your battles wisely and that's exactly what you do. Every sprint, every horizontal movement and every jump that he makes is elegantly calculated and executed quickly. Say you can almost hear an echo referring to "Thomas Tuchel's type", and that's indeed the case.

Lethal for the defense of the opponent

As mentioned above, it is important that Paredes does not constantly move against the opposition in possession possession, as this would weaken the overall defensive structure of his side. Paredes has the ability to read the game and choose the right time to ride and press the player in possession of the ball or about to receive the pbad. This timing and intelligent movement make him deadly for the defense of his opponents and reliable for his own.

The numbers are also on his side. WhoScored has given him a score of 7.44 this season and he is currently in their Russian Premier League team of the season. His ranking is the league's second best player this season and that's about all I want to say with Paredes numbers. He deserves to be watched as much as possible before his game is judged by numbers because, as reliable as the numbers are, in his case, they can not paint a complete picture.

With all of the above in mind, Paredes is really a good buy for PSG. This is the team well known for its deadly transitions from deep defensive to fast attack in seconds and Mbappe is elemental in its execution. In the heart of their game, there is a place for Leandro Paredes.

Ideal complement for Verratti and Neymar

While PSG players recover the ball in their own half, one of the first instincts is to see Mbappe and send him an aerial pbad in his path. The skills of Mbappe are visible in this sequence: he accelerates to reach the ball, takes out the power of the defender who tries to score, controls the ball that usually comes from behind with his first touchdown and then prepares for a shot. That's what Paredes is good for, long balls and a vision out of the ordinary that must spot Mbappe in the first place. In addition, as you can see below, Paredes is not afraid to shoot at the opposing goal since the beginning of the match, which has been missing for the PSG team for years.

Compared to Julian Weigl, with a similar profile, Paredes could be an ideal complement for Verratti and Neymar in PSG midfielder. He could also hear quickly with his attackers, Cavani and Mbappé, who know how to find the right spaces on the front line of the Parisian attack.

Verrati for the tempo, Paredes for the distribution and Just and Neymar as a giant killer seem a good recipe for success in the middle of the field. With an already strong defense and a crazy attacking force, PSG has all the necessary to claim the title of the Champions League.

Marko Jerlekovic

Marko Jerleković is a 22-year-old journalism student who lives at the University of the North in Koprivnica (Croatia) and lives in Zagreb. He is currently working as a sports journalist for Net.hr, the Croatian online media website, occasionally featured on Futbolgrad. He's a big fan of Olympique Lyonnais and a football fan.

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