Last week I wrote an article about Antonio Silva. A young defender receiving a lot of interest around the world. This week I thought I’d look at another talented defender from Portgual. Young African star, Ousmane Diomande.
Sporting Lisbon have many great players under current manager Ruben Amorim. Goncalo Inacio and Pedro Goncalves have been standout academy gradutes for Sporting, whilst players like Ivan Fresnada, Morten Hjulmand and highly rated Viktor Gyokeres, have all continued their development in Portugal’s capital.
Diomande began his football career at Ivory Coast side, AS Abobo. Once he turned professional, he made a move to Danish club, Midtylland in January 2020. He spent a season on loan at Portuguese club, Mafra, before Sporting came along in January 2023, and paid €7.5 million for the young defender.
He broke into the first team in immediately, and quickly became a main player in the team, featuring in a number of important matches for ‘Leoes’, as they went on to beat Arsenal in the Europa League round of 16, and finish 4th in the Primeria Liga.
This season, Diomande has continued his great work at Sporting, and has grown into one of the best young defenders around the world. Many teams around Europe have been linked to the African sensation including Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle, Liverpool and Juventus to name a few.
Directing The Match
Diomande is the opposite of Silva. When Antonio Silva is described as a ‘old styled defender’, Diomande is very much in the bracket of a modern day defender.
That means not only is he able to play short, quick passes to speed up the play of Sporting’s tempo in a match, but also a mixture of long range passes, particularly into the wingers or midfielders higher up the pitch to start fast paced attacks.
Amorim’s style suits a player like Diomande, as Sporting play with an extremely strong level of possession. With the Ivorian’s ability to calmly receive possession, and disturb it, it makes him such a great assest to Sporting.
When you then consider his ability to dribble the ball out the back, to bring the play forward. He becomes the ultimate defender for Sporting. They set up with a 3-4-3 formation with Diomande taking the central position, and sometimes off the right. In many cases, Diomande drives forward with the ball to make opposition players press him, as he picks out players out wide.
Ultimately, the development he has made in this role at Sporting has made a massive impact on the early stages of his career, and has put him in the position to sit at table with many of the elite center backs around Europe.
Stopping Dangerous Attacks
When it comes to stopping the opposition, Diomande is also a capable player in doing so. Currently in the 2023/24 season, the Ivory Coast international has averaged 1.77 tackles per 90, which is in the top 80%. Showing this aggresive ability to scent danger is once again, a vital part of his game.
When combining this with his speed and strength, as he overpowers attackers, is once again, a showcase of his ability to play at the top level in Europe, as he’s become a vital part to Sporting’s squad.
However, when it comes to interceptions, blocks and clearances, Diomande doesn’t make as many as his peers per 90. Many may argue this is due to the fact that Diomande doesn’t engage with these defensive actions.
There is more to it though, as the three at the back formation, Diomande plays as the central player out of the three when Sebastian Coates isn’t selected. Therefore, he will be ingaged in less defensive actions. When looking at the defensive qualities the midfielders offer like Hidemasa Morita and Morten Hjulmand, on top of Sporting being one of the best teams in the league, Diomande is required to do less defending, and more in possession.
This season, Diomande has been able to prove to the world, that is he definitely a topic to talk about for many of the biggest teams in the world, if they are looking for a bright, young defender.
He certainly has the qualities of a modern, elite defender, and it feels like a matter of time before one of Europe’s top teams makes a move for the African 20-year-old. Add the right facilities, and progression from the club, Diomande could set himself up to be a world class defender for years to come.
Final Whistle 