Numbers behind Nicolo Barella’s impressive performance against Atletico Madrid

Nicolo Barella showcased a wonderful performance against Atletico Madrid as Inter grabbed a narrow first-leg advantage in the Champions League Round of 16.

Marko Arnautovic received the MVP for the match but it was Nicolo Barella’s stupendous midfield performance which took Inter over the line. The 27-year-old created 4 goalscoring chances and synchronized well with Matteo Darmian to lead the Nerazzurri’s charge from the right flank. 

Diego Simeone’s men found it tough to breach Barella’s gameplay as the Italian international won 75 per cent of attempted tackles and won 7 duels out of the attempted 10. He stood as an engine in the heart of the hosts’ formation and dictated momentum to sway the gameplay in his team’s favour. Combining well with his midfield partner Hakan Calhanoglu, Nicolo Barella and the Turkish man made it possible for Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram to concentrate on exploiting Atletico Madrid’s spaces at the back while supplying them with incisive long balls. 

He played all 90 minutes of the match and ended the game with a passing accuracy of 87%, while creating four chances and played ten passes into the final third.

All statistics are sourced from the FotMob website.

Trambak Bhattacherjee | GIFN