It can be risky to draw conclusions about an attacking player based solely on his goals and assists. This method is hardly suitable for an objective analysis of the game profile, tactical literacy and importance for the team structure. But in the case of Dominik Soboslai, it’s hard to resist the temptation.
The Hungarian is known for his powerful shot and flashy technique, making him the perfect hero for video highlights, but a solid season of consistent performances has made many clubs in Europe remember his talent. The greatest determination was shown by Liverpool, urgently in need of updating the midfield. The Reds activated a clause in the player’s contract, which was in effect until June 30.
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According to The Times, the purchase came to £60 million and the club have yet to buy a player at center for that money. The 22-year-old is Liverpool’s second summer signing after Alexis McAllister.
Training in Europe
Moving to the Premier League will mark the end of a five-year association with the Red Bull system for Dominic. At the age of 16 (2016), he left his native Hungary and joined Austrian side Liefering, later playing for Red Bull Salzburg and RB Leipzig. It may seem that the boy’s career was on the rise, but the beginning of Soboslai’s life in Germany was not easy: he arrived at Leipzig in December 2020 with an injury that prevented him from making his debut until August of the following year.
Dominik Soboslai
Photo: Sebastian Widmann/Getty Images
In his first full season 2021/2022, Dominik also failed to gain credibility at the club, leaving the bench more often (16 times) than breaking into the starting eleven (15 times). That campaign turned difficult not only for the player, but for all of Leipzig: the club replaced Jesse Marsh, true to the Red Bull family style, with Domenico Tedesco.
Soboslai still scored six goals and eight assists in the Bundesliga, and in the 2022/2023 season he became an important part of the updated Leipzig under the leadership of Marco Rose, improving his performance. The Hungarian finished the season with a goal against Eintracht Frankfurt in the National Cup final, and the best confirmation of his greater importance for the team is the second result in minutes on the field, after central defender Willy Orban.
Strengths
Soboslai’s most important skill in the eyes of the future businessman and specifically of Jurgen Klopp is versatility. Since he moved to Leipzig, he has played as a central and attacking midfielder, left and right winger, even as a striker. The Liverpool manager appreciates the players’ ability to express themselves in different parts of the field, and most of the Reds’ players in the attacking phase can replace each other.
jessie swamp
former manager Soboslai at Leipzig
“In terms of talent, there aren’t many players who can play better at his position. Someone is strong, someone is technical, someone is tactically good, someone defends confidently or runs a lot. But Soboslai is special because he has all these skills combined. Dominik is as talented as Erling Haaland.”
By the way, Soboslai became very close to the Norwegian striker during the period of joint performances with Salzburg. The teammates (Holand is only three months older) interacted well on and off the pitch. “He often advised me what to do and how to do it – a true leader,” Dominic praised the future Premier League rival.
Let’s go back to the Hungarian’s skills. Under Marco Rosa, Soboslai often played as a right midfielder in 4-2-2-2 or 4-2-3-1 formations, but he is not a typical winger, but a creative attacking midfielder who switches to a wide position. Importantly, Dominik is also comfortable on the left flank, where he regularly plays in Marco Rossi’s 3-4-3 formation with the Hungarian national team.
Dominik Soboslai in the Hungarian national team
Photo: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images
Regardless of whether he moves towards the opponent’s goal from the left or right, Soboslai can deliver cutting passes to his speeding teammates or uncover the marked “weapon” from a long distance. Only Bayern’s Leroy Sane has hit more shots from outside the box than Dominik in the 2022/2023 Bundesliga season.
Only two of those shots ended in goals, and xG pundits can point to the unproductiveness of frequent attempts to score from 20-30 meters, but Soboslai shoots too effectively from distance to hold him against this. Particularly impressive is the technique of hitting a stationary ball, set pieces are another weapon in Dominic’s arsenal. When he was a teenager, he stayed after training and sent the ball to the goal over the back wall 200 times, honing his skills.
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We re-entered the high area, but the Hungarian knows not only how to scatter nine balls. His average of 2.6 chances created per game is ninth among all Bundesliga players last season. You can assume he filled the set pieces stat, but of the game he has an average of 1.7 chances created per game, 11th in the league.
Given his position on the attacking edge, crosses from the wing were the most common way Soboslai created sharpness last season. But Dominik does not just shoot into the penalty area without looking – the Hungarian confuses opponents by dropping the ball to oncoming teammates or deliberately slowing down the pace of the attack with a placed pass. Soboslai has not yet ripened for a serious comparison with a red genius, but it can be noted in advance that he vaguely resembles Kevin De Bruyne. Soboslai’s technical equipment is beyond doubt, but it is the ability to choose the optimal solution under pressure that distinguishes the best bottom players from the simply gifted.
Physical
What’s in the fizukhe? Dominik is a winger, but he can’t always take down the opponent in a one-on-one situation. Speed over short distances is not his forte, but opponents tend to underestimate the Hungarian’s ability to cut as much gear as possible in open spaces.
Dominik Soboslai
Photo: Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images
According to Bundesliga metrics, Soboslai’s top speed is 35.2 km/h. He is 31st among all players in the championship on this indicator, not bad considering that 506 people play in Germany’s top division. He completed 863 sprints, seventh in the Bundesliga. A lot of German league transfers to England of late have not lived up to expectations: Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Jadon Sancho (and Naby Keita) come to mind. Soboslai’s technical and physical profile suggests that things will be different with him.
Tactic
A lack of focus and discipline in defensive play was often blamed on Soboslai at the start of his career, but Dominik showed marked improvement last season both on and off the ball. All the clubs in the Red Bull system bet on intense football with a lot of pressure, in this sense adapting to the Jurgen Klopp system should not cause problems for the Hungarian.
jurgen klopp
Photo: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images
Last season, only Bayern made more urgent moves than Leipzig. Soboslai played a key role in the transition phase of the match, in which Rosé made a special bet: Dominik stayed in a high position after losing the ball to put him in the danger zone in case of a successful counter-pressure from the team.
And Liverpool? After switching to a hybrid formation late last season, the team’s attacking midfield consisted of defensive midfielders Fabinho and rising Trent Alexander-Arnold and two forward eights (or “tens”) supporting the attack.
Alongside Alexis McAlister, Soboslai can form an attacking midfield duo in Klopp’s new system, and his long-range shots promise to be a useful weapon in games with opponents who prefer to defend with low blocking. Until Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was checked into the infirmary, the Reds’ coaching staff only asked him to act in a similar fashion: strike from distance after dispersing an opponent from midfield into the penalty area.
Even during the playing period for Salzburg, rumors sent Soboslai to the best clubs in all of Europe. It looks like Dominik is ready to take another step forward after an impressive season in Germany.
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