After Catriel Cabellos, it’s time to move on to our next South American talent by Juan Gafas.
Alan Matturro
Age: 17
Club: Defensor Sporting (Uruguay)
Position: Centre Back
Nationality: Uruguayan
Market Value: £450,000 (€500,000) - Transfermarkt
Matturro made his first team debut just a month after his 17th birthday, and has played regularly for his club side, Defensor Sporting, since. In recent months, his performances have even earned him an opportunity to train with the national team.
Standing tall at 6′ 2″, the Uruguayan is strong, aggressive and has good mobility and athletic attributes. Matturro is a centre back who excels when defending the box as well as in transitions and in wide areas. When the attacker drops back to offer, the youngster will get tight and aggressive, trying to stick a leg out to nick the ball, and his mobility makes it hard for the opponent to break away. In wide areas and transitions, his agility serves him well too, and he is not easy to take on 1v1.
In possession he shows composure and his ability to play out from the back, even when under pressure. He’s decent when it comes to manipulating the ball, and using his weaker foot.
While he has the vision for passes between the lines, his implementation needs improvement, and not just when trying more difficult passes.
As well as some weaker aspects of his play in possession, he has room for improvement when defending too - particularly when it comes to his positioning and decision making when facing the ball. Mainly, he needs to improve his understanding of when to break shape and attack the ball, and when to sit back.
Nevertheless, at 17, Matturro is a very interesting prospect with a bright future ahead of him, as a centre back or maybe even as a full back - his time in the Uruguayan league surely won’t be much longer, and I can expect a move to a bigger team to be on the horizon.
