Underrated players to watch out for in the 2024/25 Serie A season | OneFootball

The 2024/25 Serie A season is now upon us. As Inter look to defend their title, it is key to know that no team has defended the Serie A title since Juventus did during their peak and before their downfall.

Having said that, we are not really talking about what always gets talked about. We are now focusing on some underrated Serie A players to watch out for in the 2024/25 season.

Tijjani Noslin

The Dutchman joined Lazio from Verona this summer and the move has gone radar under-the-radar. The Biancocelesti have paid €15m for the right winger, months after he had joined Verona from Fortuna Sittard.

In his brief time at the Gialloblu, Noslin racked up five goals and four assists in only 17 Serie A appearances and he either played on the right or upfront under Marco Baroni, who is now the Lazio boss. He is not just about the goals and assists, but has a very good 1v1 ability and can use both feet to go past a defender and those are qualities that put him in good stead as an incisive final third provider and goalscorer.

With Lazio now having undertaken a project which will be full of younger players, Noslin is one player who can light it up.

Zito Luvumbo

Similar to Noslin, Zito Luvumbo was highly impressive last season for a Cagliari side that had very limited amount of the ball during games. His directness and decision making in the final third was a constant threat to the opposition, as he often carried the team’s attacking impetus on his 22-year-old shoulders.

He contributed to 0.42 goals per 90 minutes, essentially coming up with a contribution in every second game he played and that proved hugely valuable for the Sardinians, who avoided relegation. He had also been vital in their promotion in the 2022/23 season.

This season could be a huge one for Zito, as Davide Nicola presents a similar system as what Claudio Ranieri had last season and it would allow him the chance to upgrade his numbers and then seek a bigger move.

Morten Frendrup

While Zito and Noslin make their impact higher up the pitch, Genoa’s Morten Frendrup makes his impact in the defensive side.

Last season, no other player made more successful tackles plus interceptions per 90 minutes than the midfielder, excelling under Alberto Gilardino. He isn’t the tallest but Frendrup is still a physical specimen off the ball and goes about winning the ball back and circulating it forward.

He is neat on the ball and has come leaps and bounds in a short time, attracting scouts from multiple major clubs. If things keep going right and the Gilardino project stays on track, Frendrup will improve multifolds in the 2024/25 season.

Koni de Winter

Koni de Winter has been around the Serie A blocks for some time now but he still remains an underrated defender, who led the Genoa defensive line last season and should be doing the same in the 2024/25 season.

Someone who can play in the middle of the back three and on either side, the former Juventus man is really reliable aerially and relies on his reading of the game to be defensively astute. He is also pretty good on the ball and has also shown an ability to play as a wide centre-back who is good at covering spaces.

He has also played at full-back during his time at Juve and he is seen as a versatile option in defensive midfield too. But his best comes at centre-back, with his understanding of the game and pace making him a player to watch out for in the upcoming campaign.

Patrick Dorgu

The 19-year-old Danish left-back Patrick Dorgu is arguably one of the best young players in that position in Europe. He impressed last season, showing how he can turn out to be a rather complete left-back.

He didn’t just play at left-back but also played on the left side of the midfield, showing that his future might also lie at wing-back. But the Danish defender showed a keen ability to win the ball back, recover and make those impressive challenges in the defensive third.

He is quite dominant physically despite being a teenager and has a good relationship with the ball that shines through whenever he marauds forward. This will be the next phase of his revolution and it will be exciting to see.

Dan Ndoye

In Bologna’s superb season under Thiago Motta, the likes of Riccardo Calafiori, Joshua Zirkzee, Jhon Lucumi got a lot of credit but Dan Ndoye’s contributions were rather undervalued. But he proved his worth at EURO 2024, impressing for Switzerland.

While he scored once and assisted once for the Rossoblu last season, Ndoye is a hardworking wide player who has shown that he can play on either side. While still a bit raw, he relies a lot on his quick movements in the final third and out wide to help the side make progress from those areas.

He is good at using his body to create a distance between himself and his man and only needs to add the final ball into his play to make him an even more decisive player.

Kaustubh Pandey I GIFN