Aleksandar Pavlović – A Star is Born by Jake McGhee
Introduction
Bayern Munich have long been Germany’s frontrunners and one of the world’s greatest outfits, a well-run and revered club with impressive functionality from top to bottom with its youth sectors and their development being one of the club’s most impressive aspects. One of the most recent products to be pumped out of the Bavarian Giant’s seemingly never-ending talent factory is midfield general Aleksandar Pavlović.
This season he has turned heads worldwide by making a break into Bayern’s first team, showcasing a level of maturity beyond his years and grabbing his opportunity with both hands. Recently he has shown his worth and staked a claim in the starting 11 in Joshua Kimmich’s absence by recording 2 goals and 2 assists in under 500 minutes of football.
Playstyle
Operating in a ‘6’ role young Pavlović demonstrates an innate control of the game and dictation of the tempo around him, a tidy and concise player on the ball he seems to boast a mastery of the basics; rarely overplaying or dallying on the ball he appears to always be a step ahead of opponents playing passages of play out in his head before he receives the ball, a hallmark of any great midfielder.
Currently Aleksandar operates as part of a double pivot in Tuchel’s system, this allows him to act as a crucial player in the transitional phases. Despite only being 19 he stands at 6”2 allowing him to be a physical enforcer within Bayern’s midfield, his gangly frame coupled with his game intelligence enables him to be an incredibly press resistant midfielder in a similar ilk to Sergio Busquets. His frame also allows him to be a valuable ball-carrier in the transitional phase able to beat his man in short bursts with long strides.
Off the ball his awareness is another facet of his game, often dropping off the shoulder of his man to open up new pockets of space and open himself up for a pass, this pass and move action we often see in his game is a defining characteristic and an incredibly valuable one at that, his bravery and willingness to get on the ball and avail himself in space makes him an almost natural heir to Joshua Kimmich’s longstanding throne in the Bayern midfield.
The afore mentioned off the ball movement is further amplified in his ability to use both feet, comfortable receiving the ball on either foot in a variety of positions whether it be on the half turn, from a standing start or any other angle allows for him to constantly scan, plan ahead and act accordingly before receiving the ball and quickly being able to play the relevant pass or carry the ball forward himself.
On the defensive side of things his positional discipline is to be admired, having previously talked about his off the ball intelligence it’s no surprise to hear that he often finds himself in good positions to cut off passing lanes or intercept balls played from central positions out wide, enjoying playing on the front foot he’s able to often step out of position slightly onto the ball and support a quick break up the pitch.
This knack of knowing where to be is unteachable as seen in the above clip, anticipating where the ball will drop and being able to insert himself into dangerous positions and apply the finish only highlights the natural ability that the young German-Serb possesses.
What lies in the future?
On a seemingly unstoppable upward trajectory and being widely regarded as one of the leading defensive minded midfield talents in the world it’d be hard to disagree that the sky isn’t the limit for Aleskandar Pavlović, boasting an incredible set of midfield blueprints for such a young man and being in a youth-enabling and encouraging environment such as Bayern Munich I’m certain that over the coming years he will become a cog in Bayern or any other team’s midfield.
Many fans are already urging for an international call-up for Aleksandar to secure his name on Die Mannschaft’s books for years to come as he could also represent Serbia at an international level.
An incredibly exciting and mature talent the future truly is bright, I’m positive this isn’t the last time you’ll be hearing his name.