Going to repost what I posted in the Allegri thread the other day about his regression in terms of passing the past 18 months:
“Locatelli was absolutely fantastic as a deep-lying playmaker for Sassuolo in their double pivot.
He was 99th percentile in Europe in 2020-21 (87) for total passes/90. He’s 64th percentile for total passes/90 this year. (51)
He was 83rd percentile for pass completion % (87.1%) in 20-21. He’s 56th percentile this year (81.4%).
And before you say he was attempting easier passes there or just short side and back passes. He wasn’t. He was 99th percentile for progressive passes at Sassuolo in 20-21 (9.83). He’s 65th percentile this year (4.96).
He was 93rd percentile for long passes completed in 20-21 (7.77). He’s 86th percentile this season (5.6)
He was 99th percentile for passes into final third in 20-21 (10.15). He’s 84th percentile this season (5.28)”
Now, the reasons for this regression? Could be a number of things. Locatelli could be letting the pressure of playing for Juve get to him. He could be playing overambitious passes regularly and needs to simplify things a bit. His midfield partners here could be poor and/or unsuited to his playmaking. Our tactics could be too static, too little movement, players not getting themselves open and available upfield for vertical passes. Almost the entire team is underperforming badly in terms of passing between each other, it’s hard to shine in that.
Regardless of all that, in his last year at Sassuolo he was one of the best CMs in Europe in terms of passing. That player is somewhere inside him and is the reason we bought him. He needs to do better himself, but we also need a coach who can help him be that player again.