EXCLUSIVE: WhoScored Interviews Mattia De Sciglio

Mattia De Sciglio is a very young prospect. At 20, he will become one of the most talented defenders in Serie A and he will certainly take part in the next year's World Cup in Brazil. He is capable of playing both at right or left back comfortably, as well as being capable of playing in the centre of the backline.

This season, he has started 24 times to date in Serie A for the Rossoneri and 4 times in Champions League. On the 21st of March 2013, he made his debut with Cesare Prandelli's Azzurri in a friendly against Brazil in Geneva, starting the game at left back.

WhoScored.com met him on a sunny day at Milanello, where AC Milan are preparing ahead of their last match league match of the season, and one that could be decisive for next season's Champions League.

Mattia, having progressed through the youth ranks, how much more intense is training with the first team and what players have you looked up to at the club during your development?

The first thing that impressed me in the first team and in Serie A in general, was the speed of the game. Very different from the “Primavera team” (Italian Under 20 Championship). Here the ball flows more quickly and you do not have much time to think about the game. You have to be fast also with your brain, and try to think where the ball eventually can go before it arrives at its final destination. I am a Milanista since birth, so I grew up following Paolo Maldini, “The Captain”, and I have always admired his style of play. I never played with him, but he was the captain of my team, so, Paolo Maldini, definitely.

You managed to break into the first team last season but how surprised are you to have played such a big part for Milan at such a young age in the current campaign?

Frankly, I am not surprised. At the beginning of the season I hoped to play some games in this campaign and then, between November and December, both Ignazio Abate and Kevin Constant had injuries, so I had some opportunities and I took them. Now I am satisfied with my season so far and I hope to have such a big part also next season with my team.

After a tough start to the season Milan are in great form and back at the top end of the table. Was there a particular game or moment that you saw as a turning point this season?

I think the turning point was at Naples. We were 2-0 down and at the end we equalized thanks to a Stephan El Shaarawy’s double. We started the season very badly and in the first half of that match, we looked at each other and we said together:” We are AC Milan, we can’t play this way, we can’t stay in this position in the table”. That was the turning point of the season. Three days after Naples, we won in Brussels against Anderlecht (3-1) and we reached the round of sixteen in the Champions League and then (all in the space of a week) we defeated Juventus at San Siro.

Juventus have emerged as the strongest force in Italy once again but Milan's form is that of a top team. How confident are you that Milan can challenge for the Scudetto again next season?

Yes, sure. This season AC Milan changed a lot and the youngsters, like me, have had a lot of space in the first team. Next season we will be more experienced and more confident about our possibilities, so yes, I’m very confident.

You've broken into the side at a time when the use of stats to analyse performance is growing. Do the coaching staff alert you to the facts and figures from matches and how beneficial do you feel they are to a young player’s development?

I think they are very important and very interesting for a player. At AC Milan, especially after the home matches, we analyse a series of data and statistics, especially on how many kilometres we run, the percentage of acceleration and deceleration during a game, the speed we had, and a lot of interesting things that helped us for the following matches.

As a full-back you have to come up against a lot of tricky wingers, but is there a certain style of player that you feel you are stronger or weaker at defending against?

The worst thing for a defender is not to have a “reference point”. There are players, very skilful, who don’t play the entire game on the wing, but they move to the centre or, thanks to their ability to play with both feet, they try to confuse the defender, and induce him to commit an error. You have to be concentrated for the entire match.

WhoScored's unique statistical ratings rank you among the top 10 full-backs in Europe's top 5 leagues this season. Who do you admire in terms of players in your position, both past and present?

I have just mentioned Maldini for the past, and today I have to say Dani Alves. At Barcelona, for their style of play, he is a fantastic player both defensively and offensively, so I like him very much.

You've had to play on both sides of the defence this season, and though you started out as a right-back do you still see that as your best position having made your international debut on the left?

For me it’s the same to play on the right or the left. Being right footed, when I play on the right it is more natural for me, but when I play on the other side, I like to move inside sometimes and try to shoot with my right foot. I can play on both flanks and during the last derby for example, I played quite well offensively at left back.

Your WhoScored statistical player characteristics suggest that crossing is a very strong asset of your game. How important do you feel it is for the modern full-back to offer a significant threat going forward and are you particularly encouraged to support attacks by the manager?

It’s very important. When you have full backs that are comfortable going forward, you can create superiority and you can create a lot of difficulties for the opposing team. Obviously the manager asks us to support midfielders and attackers, we are all part of the same team and we have to move together, defensively and offensively.

The same characteristics also show that you are also strong at tackling and winning aerial duels, but what facets of your game do you feel need the most work?

I need to improve more on my concentration during a game. At this level you can’t have a single distraction, and you can’t lose your focus for a second. You play against top players and sometimes you can play a good match for 89 minutes, and have a distraction in the other one. In Serie A you have to be concentrated for the entire 90 minutes, or more…

Have you ever played as a central defender?

Yes I have. This season I played at the centre only once, against Siena at home, but I started my career with the youth teams as a central defender. Then, my managers asked me to move on the right and, in the last year with the Primavera, I played more offensively. We played a 4-2-3-1 and I was one of the three, behind the lone striker, but also in that case, I have to play both phases: defensively and offensively.

Which Inter player did you find the most difficult to play against this season?

In the derbies this season, I played against Fredy Guarin and he is a difficult player to play against. He is very strong physically and he is also good technically, so I would have to say the Colombian international.