Edouardo Camavinga - a name you've probably heard mentioned a fair amount. Though his name is becoming increasingly known around Europe, many don't quite know what the young Frenchman offers.
Camavinga is only 18 years of age, born in Angola but representing France at national level. He is a remarkably versatile left-footed midfielder, currently playing for Rennes in Ligue 1. He often plays on the right of either a midfield two or three and is a huge future prospect, with his multifunctionality enhanced by his wide range of capabilities.
He was only 16 when he made his Rennes debut in April 2019, going on to play 25/28 and 35/38 league matches in the subsequent two campaigns as Rennes finished third (with the pandemic halting Ligue 1) and sixth respectively. The Frenchman gained his first senior national team call-up from Didier Deschamps in August last year, replacing Pogba in the squad after his positive Covid-19 test. Camavinga became the youngest player to be called up to the French squad since 1932, becoming the youngest man to feature and the youngest man to score since 1914. His performances over the past few seasons have been rewarded with a spot in the French squad for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.
The youngster definitely isn't massively adept when it comes to goal contributions, with a return of only a single goal and two assists in each of the past two seasons for Rennes. However, with Pogba a possible partner at United, minimal impetus would actually have to be placed on that front.
So, what exactly is Camavinga good at? To be honest, he can do a very handy bit of everything throughout the midfield; given his age, this is ideal as he can essentially be moulded into whatever role his manager wishes.
He covers an immense amount of ground, proving comfortable in both the attacking and defensive halves. This ability to cover in all different areas really exacerbates his adaptability. He covered the more defensive areas to a greater extent in the 2019/20 campaign, relative to the following season where he progressed slightly more. He specialises in transitions, where he offers an invaluable link between defence and attack by offering himself deep before frequently venturing into the opposing half.
I've already mentioned that he doesn't necessarily offer the largest attacking input, with less than one shot attempted per game on average. He is definitely willing to venture forward, and can get into promising areas very effectively. However, given his experience in a slightly less offensive midfield role, attacking is not yet a complete speciality by way of factors such as end product.
His passing ability, conversely, is already very much a speciality within his game. His chance creation numbers aren't of a low echelon but also aren't breathtaking, with an average of around two shot-creating actions produced during matches. Still, if he was to operate deeper in the pivot, his playmaking capabilities would certainly be sufficient.
Over the last season, he has been more inclined to get hold of and distribute the ball. As oppose to 55.3 touches per game in his first full season, he touched the ball an average of 58.7 times per game in the league during the season just passed - exacerbating a development in his confidence. His 40.5 accurate passes per game last season is an increase from the 2019/20 term, with a similar enough accuracy of near to 90%. He did play double the amount of key passes per match in the most recent season as well, with a still relatively low average of 0.6. Nonetheless, it shows that Camavinga is continuing to add to different aspects of his game.
His passing range is particularly standout, with a 77% accuracy meaning approximately 1.7 long balls were completed by the teenager per match in the league last season. The 17.1 accurate passes per game in his own half throughout the 2020/21 season were within an impressive 93% accuracy, emphasising his composure to rarely cede possession in potentially threatening areas for the opposition. In fact - last season in the league - only 1 error from the Frenchman led to an opposition shot (none the previous season - remarkable given the inexperience at his age). In terms of passes in the opposing half, the 86% completion rate last season was up on the previous campaign even though he attempted a significantly greater amount of passes in those areas each match. He is willing to take risks, losing possession in excess of 8 times per game on average. Nevertheless, he is intelligent enough to ensure his loss of possession isn't detrimental to his team by taking those risks in the right areas.
His ability to carry the ball cannot be understated, with his physical presence a bonus in a multitude of aspects. His dribbling could still be developed, but he is already in a relatively high percentile in this aspect. He completed 1.2 dribbles per game in the league last season which may not seem a huge amount, though that is an increase on the previous campaign with the maintenance of around at 70% success rate - you wouldn't fancy seeing him running at you as a defender. He is undoubtedly a nuisance, drawing an average of 1.5 fouls per game last season (and a substantial 2.4 the campaign prior). You can only see this side of his game even further improving as he continues to grow even further in stature.
A myth that needs busting is that Camavinga is incapable of operating as the more defensive body within a double pivot. As aforementioned, at a tender age of 18, his flexibility by way of roles means he can easily adapt to become any type of midfield player to suit any type of system. In the 2019/20 season, he often played that deeper role for Rennes. During that league campaign, he made a hefty 4.2 tackles per game on average - conjoint with 1.4 interceptions. In the more fluid role during the recent campaign, he did achieve higher numbers of possession regained (0.5 per game) and was dribbled past less (1.1 times per game). It's blatant that he could improve his interceptive ability, but his current style is that of a very efficient presser that would still cause effective nullification of opposition attacks. These figures, especially tackling, are entirely comparable to established holding midfielders such as Declan Rice. I don't see why Camavinga wouldn't be able to play this deeper playmaking role if he was to join United!
One thing that also stands out to me is his discipline. In his first full season he only accumulated only 4 yellow cards, with a further 6 last term - perfectly acceptable given the nature of his position. He continues to concede less free kicks as he gets older, with naivety in this respect never really being an overriding issue.
Moreover, Camavinga wins the majority of his duels: there was a 57% duel success rate in the league last season, with 6.1 successful duels per game. When he operated the deeper position in the 2019/20 season, he won 8.6 duels per match in Ligue 1. The duel prowess in his first full season is also shown by an average of 1.8 more ground duel successes compared to the 2020/21 campaign, with 7.3 completed per game in the former season.
The Frenchman can progress as many say, but he most definitely has the ability to acquire defensive responsibilities. At a price of reportedly only €30m given his contract running down, it would be a steal to purchase France's next big thing.
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