Florian Grillitsch has been one of the standout performers for Hoffenheim under new boss Alfred Schreuder. The Austrian has become integral to their style of play both in attack and defence. The 24-year-old is a key link between defence and attack, playing as the deepest central midfielder in Hoffenheim’s midfield trio. This tactical analysis aims to look at Grillitsch’s style of play, tactical influence and skills through analysis.
Who is Florian Grillitsch?
Florian Grillitsch made his debut for Werder Bremen in 2015-16 season aged 20. He went on to make 54 appearances for the club, scoring four goals and recording six assists. Grillitsch transferred to Hoffenheim in the 2017-18 season. Grillitsch has made 72 appearances for Hoffenheim thus far, scoring thrice and assisting six goals. Apart from this, the midfielder has also been capped 14 times for his national team, Austria.
Style of play
Grillitsch is very much the modern defensive midfielder in his tactical awareness, intelligence, stamina and physicality. In modern football, a defensive midfielder is also expected to possess the technical ability to passes well, a trait which Grillitsch possesses in abundance. Grillitsch is a perfect fit for Hoffenheim’s many systems. His systemic versatility makes him one of the first names on the team sheet as this tactical analysis will show.
Under the previous coach Julian Nagelsmann, Hoffenheim used to play a three-man defence. In this system, Grillitsch was very often played as the deep-lying midfielder who was tasked with shielding the defence as the wing-backs ventured up the pitch. A noticeable trait of Grillitsch’s play is his ability to receive the ball from the defence and spread it to the players ahead of him, illustrating his technical proficiency.
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