Giovanni Fabbian: The underrated Italian midfielder shining in Serie B by Calum Scullion
Player Bio:
Name: Giovanni Fabbian
Age: 20
Place of birth: Camposampiero
Nationality: Italian
Height: 1.86M
Club: Inter Milan (on loan at Reggina)
Position: Central Midfielder
Background:
Giovanni Fabbian was born on the 14th of January 2003 in Camposampiero, northern Italy. The 20 year old Midfielder started his youth career at Padova, he stayed there until 2018 and then moved to Italian giants Inter Milan where he has been a standout in the youth teams and is seen as a very good prospect at the club.
Fabbian is still yet to make his debut for the Inter Milan first team but he did score 8 goals and get 4 assists in 35 appearances for Inter Milans Primavera squad (U19).
He has also represented Italy at every youth level from U16 onwards and currently has scored 2 goals in 3 appearances for the Italy U20 squad.
At the start of this season Fabbian was looking for first team football so completed a loan move to Serie B team Reggina. He has had a breakout season so far and has scored 8 goals and got an assist in 26 appearances and has been a key player in Reggina’s push for promotion to Serie A as they currently sit 6th at the time of writing.
Play style:
Giovanni Fabbian is a central Midfielder and from the games I watched he played as a box to box midfielder, he performed this role exceptionally well and showed great versatility and adaptability to change into an attacking midfielder when the team was on the attack and then get back and play more defensive when the team was on the back foot.
He keeps the game flowing by playing lots of short passes and 1-2s in the middle of the pitch and then he will pick his moment to either play a longer forward pass, a pass out wide or attempt a dribble of his own. When the ball is played out wide he will then make a darting run for the box and look to get into an attacking position, he has scored a couple of goals from making these runs and getting onto the end of crosses. He is very comfortable on the ball and makes good central dribbles in which he will often move through the midfield and into the attacking area of the pitch, he will then look to switch the play to one of the wingers and set up a cross or pass into the nearest forward player.
One thing that really surprised me about Fabbian is how good he is in the air, he is a real aerial threat from corners and crosses and at the same time also makes a lot of interceptions with good headers. Being around 6 feet tall probably naturally makes him better aerially but I just wasn’t expecting it to be one of his best qualities as its not really something you associate with technically gifted midfielders.
As I said earlier he can also get back and help out defensively, he uses his great engine and running power to track back, break up the play and make good interceptions around the pitch. He is also an effective tackler and blocker and can provide that extra defensive cover when the team is under pressure and needs help.
Like all young players, Giovanni does have some things in his game that he could improve and get better at. He has really good vision and can see runs but his long passing can be inconsistent and inaccurate at times, he is much better at playing short/medium range passes and building play up. Another thing id like to see him work on is his physicality and strength, he is tall and moves well but can be often outmuscled and dispossessed by a stronger and more aggressive opponent. These are some of the noticeable drawbacks in his game right now but I don’t think they are major concerns and his qualities already make him a very promising young player and an important thing to remember is that this is Fabbian’s first season of professional football so he will still be adjusting to the speed and physicality of the professional game compared to youth football.
Overall review and career future:
Giovanni Fabbian is one of the most underrated midfielders in Italy and I’m surprised it has took him this long to breakthrough and play professional football. He is obviously highly regarded at Inter Milan as he would have been sold earlier on if they didn’t value him and I think it will be very interesting to see if he gets a chance at Inter next season.
He is having a good season on loan at Reggina and he may potentially look to leave Inter in the summer and get a permanent move there, personally I don’t see this happening unless Reggina get promoted to Serie A. I do think He will leave Inter if he is not promised first team minutes next season but I think he should be aiming for a mid-table Serie A team as he is capable of playing at that level and it would be great for his development.
Overall Giovanni Fabbian is a very promising midfielder and he has a great skillset, he’s fun to watch, a goal threat and also has that bit of steel and defensive power for when he needs to use it. The big question for him is when his loan at Reggina ends and he returns to Inter, will he stay or will he look for a move elsewhere, in my opinion I think he should move to another team in Serie A unless he is promised first team football at Inter. It will be very interesting to see what the future holds for him and I think his decision in the summer will define his career, I will definitely be keeping an eye on him to see how his career develops and where he ends up next season.