Iván Fresneda. Who is the new Spanish sensation that Arsenal and Real Madrid want?

Iván Fresneda. Haven’t you heard that name before? The 18-year-old Real Valladolid right back is a rising sensation in Spanish football and is highly coveted by Arsenal, Newcastle and several other teams. What are his strengths and weaknesses?

According to Fabrizio Romano, Fresneda is in advanced talks with Arsenal and a deal could be agreed in the next week. At the same time, Newcastle are not giving up either and would love to acquire the 18-year-old talent. Fresneda only started on the bench for the weekend’s game against Atlético Madrid due to ongoing negotiations.

Real Madrid have also been linked with Fresneda, as well as Barcelona, Juventus and Borussia Dortmund. Although he has only started 10 games for Real Valladolid, his price is rising rapidly.

He came most into the scouts’ sights in the Real Madrid match. In fact, he virtually obliterated Vinicius Junior, allowing him only one successful dribble out of nine attempts. When you watch him, it’s sometimes hard to believe he only turned 18 in August.

Fresneda played in the youth for a Real Madrid academy called La Fabrica, which he joined at the age of 10. But four years later he left for Leganes, where he was snapped up by Brazilian legend Ronaldo Nazário, owner of Real Valladolid.

At the age of 17 he made his debut for the A-team in the Copa del Rey, and since the summer when Real Valladolid were promoted back to La Liga he has settled into the starting line-up after the first three rounds.

Biggest strengths

Fresneda isn’t exactly a modern, offensive-minded defender. On the contrary, his biggest strength is defensive. The 18-year-old is fantastic at taking the ball away, duelling and defending one-on-one.

On average, per game Fresneda strips the ball from the opponent 3.4 times and gains the ball 1.5 times. At the same time, he is also a very fast player, which makes it easy for him to defend even stars like Vinicius Junior. At the same time, he is a very aggressive type of player, who definitely doesn’t back down from duels.

His great strength is also his excellent reading of the game. He has a lot of confidence on the ball, he likes to dribble and his technique is also of a high level.

“He only has a few games left with us. He will be a great addition to any team and I would like him to stay, but I understand the club. His numbers are brutal, he is 18 years old but looks like he is 30 years old.

Room for improvement

Going forward, it’s a bit of a mix for Fresnedy. He likes to charge behind the opposition’s defence, but he hasn’t got the numbers yet. But that can also be attributed to Valladolid’s low potential. The Madrid native has created 17 shooting opportunities, which isn’t bad.

But at the same time, his distribution is not at that level yet. He is not a spielmacher with refined passing skills, but that can again be attributed to Valladolid’s style of play, which doesn’t hold onto the ball much.

Fresneda doesn’t take many risks in the game, averaging 2.2 progressive passes attempted per game. “Pucella” however is playing for salvation so there is not much to be surprised about, the question is how Fresneda will do if he gets more space in the offensive team.

Source: Twitter, Fabrizio Romano