Filip Ugrinic key for Valencia ahead of Sevilla meeting | OneFootball

Filip Ugrinic has become a fixture in Carlos Corberán’s Valencia midfield, valued for his running and quality in the final third. He has operated either in a double pivot or as part of a three with Guido Rodríguez and Javi Guerra while Lucas Beltrán was out.

After a tricky bedding-in period and a knee issue, he earned trust from the bench. His springboard came on the seventh of December, matchday 15, when he came on against Sevilla at Mestalla and teed up Hugo Duro for a 90th-minute equaliser in a 1-1 draw. According to Superdeporte, he has started every league game since then bar one.

That assist captured his profile, a high regain, a powerful surge into the box and a measured ball to the striker.

Valencia face Sevilla on Saturday at 21:00 with Ugrinic now entrenched in the XI despite some inconsistency. Both teams need points to pull clear of danger, a contest that resembles a final between two heavyweights in survival mode after poor leadership at board level.

Beltrán’s return after three matches forces a midfield call. During his absence, the trio of Guido Rodríguez, Javi Guerra and Ugrinic worked well against Osasuna and Alavés, but less so versus Real Oviedo. Before that, Valencia leaned on a double pivot, with Ugrinic settled and Beltrán, on loan from Fiorentina, as the attacking midfielder.

Ugrinic is a rare permanent signing in the Meriton era, Valencia paid around four million euros last summer for the now 27-year-old. The club back his present and future, he has grown through the season and, in this model, that could very likely end in a sale.

He and Eray Cömert are in Switzerland’s squad for late-March friendlies against Germany and Norway, a reward for recent club form.

Source: Superdeporte