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5. <a href="/players/felipe" target="_blank">Felipe</a></h1><strong>Pos: M | Montreal Impact | Age: 21</strong><p>Arguably the find of the season on the international transfer market by an MLS club. The diminutive Brazilian-Italian started out the season as a curiosity from the Swiss second division, but over the course of the 2012 campaign, he has turned into a real difference-maker for Montreal to the tune of 10 assists. Wherever Jesse Marsch has fielded him – Felipe has played deep in central midfield, at attacking midfield and also wide left – his slippery smooth technique has allowed him to be productive. But he’s more than just skills: The 21-year-old belies his age, playing with a steely cool and expertly managing game situations like a seasoned pro. </p><p><strong>What the TDs and coaches like:</strong> “He’s been very good. He’s a very good player … Very solid, young, skillful player … He’s a player with very good qualities … He’s very quick, he’s very good without the ball … He’s able to wiggle out of things. If you dive in, he’s going to flick it by you … Many times he’ll draw fouls. I think he’s big at drawing fouls in the mold of David Ferreira. When he plays deeper, he does a lot of work … He’s very much a two-way player … When they moved him up underneath the striker, I think his ability close to the goal is quick, he can beat you off the dribble, he scores … He has little tricks and when he does beat you, he’ll whip a good ball in … His little shakes and flicks and things are going to cause defenders problems … When you have quickness and speed and technical ability, you have an advantage if you use it properly … He has something different … He can be a game-changer, and he's shown that.”</p><p><strong>Where TDs and coaches want improvement: </strong>“With him, it’s now the consistency. You do it the first year, you surprise a lot of people, now to be consistent with his performance the next year."</p><p><strong>Opta Says:</strong> Felipe has more assists (10) in MLS this year than any other player younger than 24.</p><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" height="226" id="cff1c72oi" name="cff1c72on" width="400"><param name="movie" value="http://p.mlssoccer.com/SAu5a/video/1163978/league_2012-09-14-190918.640hq.mp4"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><embed allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" height="226" id="cff1c72ei" name="cff1c72en" src="http://p.mlssoccer.com/SAu5a/video/1163978/league_2012-09-14-190918.640hq.mp4" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="400"></object> |
<span style="font-size: 12px;">Tale of the Tape</span> |
Last Year in 24U24: N/A |
Fan Ranking: #9 |
Castrol Index (as of 9/17/12): #83 |
<span style="font-size: 12px;">2012 Stats</span> |
Matches played: 29 |
Matches started: 29 |
Goals: 4 |
Assists: 10 |
<span style="font-size: 12px;">Related Content</span> |
<ul><li><strong>WATCH:</strong><a href="http://www.impactmontreal.com/fr/node/5706" target="_blank">From The Sidelines - Felipe vs. Philadelphia</a></li><li><strong>WATCH:</strong><a href="http://www.impactmontreal.com/fr/node/5748" target="_blank">Felipe wins AT&T Goal of the Week</a></li><li><strong>WATCH:</strong><a href="http://www.impactmontreal.com/fr/node/5599" target="_blank">Three-assist day from Felipe vs. NYRB</a></li><li><strong>READ:</strong><a href="//www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2012/08/02/felipe-di-vaio-clicking-great-results-montreal" target="_blank">Felipe clicking with DP Di Vaio</a></li></ul> |
What do you think of Felipe? Tell us in the comments below.
