Uruguay is a factory of football talents.
Juan Gafas with a second talent from Liverpool Montevideo, after hosting full-back Federico Pereira, this time he focuses on a very interesting midfielder.
Fabricio Díaz
Age: 18
Club: Liverpool (Uruguay).
Position: Centre midfielder.
Nationality: Uruguayan.
Market Value: €850,000 (Transfermarkt).
Díaz is five months shy of his 19th birthday, but has already played more than 50 games for Uruguayan Primera División side Liverpool, a modest club from Montevideo with a growing reputation for player development.
A central midfielder with a more defensive orientation, he plays aggressively, keen to get into duels, and uses his good mobility and stamina to win the ball back for his side and protect the back line.
Whilst he tends to play safe, not breaking lines by passing or carrying the ball forward, Díaz doesn’t give the ball away easily. When he decides to attack however, his forward runs, especially in transition, can be threatening - a goal from Díaz on his professional debut even helped to secure Liverpool a trophy.
Whilst he does very well in these transitional periods, when his side are both in and out of possession, his positional game during slow build up play, attacking and defensively, shows a lack of experience or quality.
But Díaz's performances so far have been excellent. He works his socks off in each and every game; winning balls and helping his side get good results, and is arguably the best defensive midfielder in the league. His qualities in possession could do with a bit of improvement, and doing so would help make him a more complete player. Who knows, maybe it could earn him a call up to ‘La Celeste’ in the future.
Photo via Liverpool Montevideo Football Club official Twitter account.
