Inter Milan defender Alessandro Bastoni has earned the tag of a “perfect modern defender” for his performance against Lazio.
The 24-year-old received high marks across the board in the player ratings for the match in Italian media, as L’Interista highlight.
Bastoni has never been a player who is shy about getting involved in the attack.
The Inter 3-5-2 shape gives the Italian international a fair bit of freedom to get forward.
And Bastoni also has a role to play both on the flank, playing almost as an attacking left-back, or more in the left-sided central channel where he can push towards the penalty area.
This is a key aspect to how Inter create passing combinations to move the ball forward.
Alessandro Bastoni Praised As “Modern Defender” Following Performance Vs Lazio
Bastoni formed a formidable trio on Inter’s left side against Lazio on Friday.
The 24-year-old was almost always closed to the likes of Federico Dimarco and Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
The three exchanged passes frequently to try and play through Lazio’s midfield. And they got a fair bit of joy doing so.
Bastoni’s close control, weight of passing, and knowledge of where to find his teammates meant that he more than played his role in the interchanges with Dimarco and Mkhitaryan.
This in spite of the former Atalanta and Parma man being nominally the most defensive player of the trio.
That is the essence of how Bastoni aims to play. And it was easy to see in how the Italian played against the Biancocelesti – as a “modern defender.”
But at the same time, Bastoni also did his duties at the back as well.
Experienced Lazio winger Felipe Anderson did not get much joy on the flank against Bastoni.
The 24-year-old won the battle and prevented the Brazilian from becoming much of a creative influence.
