RB Salzburg is the team to look at when it comes to developing young talent right now and Szoboszlai is the latest talent to emerge.
Erling Haaland, Sadio Mane and Naby Keita came through the Red Bull Academy, and now it has another star coming through.
If you watched Atletico Madrid take on the Austrians you would’ve seen Dominik Szboszlai shine. His goal was a thing of true magnificence.
The ball came to him on the edge of the box. Atletico Madrid defenders flying at him, Jan Oblak, arguably the world’s finest goalkeeper, staring him down.
A lesser player may have tried to beat his man, probably got tackled and the chance would be gone. The young Hungarian however, backed himself and hit a stunning outside of the foot strike past Oblak.
A creative midfielder, capable of playing off the left, he’s very much an offensive threat. If you watch his highlights, he’s ludicrously skilful, with pace and a lethal right foot.
Any club who buys him would also secure themselves a serious threat from set-pieces. Do yourself a favour and look up his free-kick against Turkey earlier in the season. Around 35-yards-out and it’s pinged off the inside of the post straight into the top corner.
His ball retention could certainly do with improvement. His record in Europe over the last three seasons for pass accuracy is only 74.5%. However, his chance creation statistics are far more impressive.
He has five goal contributions in as many league games this season. Last season, he managed 30 goal contributions from 40 appearances in all competitions. Finally in just two Champions League games this season, he has managed to create 11 shots, over five per 90 minutes.
For a player in a side not expected to make it through the group stages, that is highly impressive. The young Hungarian has shown that he is ready to move to the next level. Already linked with Arsenal, he could fill the creative gap for many a top side.
