Cristante’s top start to the season: Roma midfielder among the best for recoveries and progressive actions

Cristante’s top start to the season: Roma midfielder among the best for recoveries and progressive actions Bryan Cristante has often been criticized by his fans, but he’s silenced everyone at the start of this season. The number 4, repeatedly accused of forming a “mediocre group” with Lorenzo Pellegrini and Gianluca Mancini, has been a key figure in midfield for the first five matchdays of the season. The Giallorossi midfielder, comparing his ball recovery data with his progressive runs per 90 minutes, is among the best in Serie A. Born in 1995, he acts as a barrier in midfield, allowing his team to quickly move upfield and thus pose a threat in the opposition’s penalty area. In this opening season, Cristante has recorded 12 progressive actions per game, with passes or dribbling, and recovered approximately nine balls per 90 minutes. Only Manuel Locatelli (approximately 13) and Piotr Zielinski (16) have made more runs up the pitch, while the ‘king’ of recoveries is Monza’s Mathis Mout (12). For Roma, the number 4 is the player who has completed the most dribbling so far (50, tied with Dybala). He also leads the way in completing passes in the final third (80) and helps Gasperini’s team in aerial duels: he has engaged in 23 of them – Hermoso is second with 10 – with a success rate of 60.9%. This year could see the breakthrough of the ’95-born player, ready to enter Roma history by climbing the all-time appearances charts.