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SERIE A’S BEST DEFENDERS

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&lt;p&gt;One of the main secrets behind Inter`s 20th Scudetto title was certainly their excellent defensive record. The Champions of Italy conceded just 22 goals in the league, including two on the last day of the season against Hellas Verona, coming very close to breaking Juventus` record of 20 goals conceded in a single league campaign (2011/2012 and 2015/2016). The Inter rearguard also recorded some incredible attacking stats, scoring 18 goals - only Bayern Leverkusen did better in Europe’s top-five leagues (28) - with seven different defenders on target, the best in Europe along with Werder Bremen and Newcastle.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&#34;https://www.legaseriea.it/en/media/serie-a/bastoni-is-the-best-defender-13kgefnj0hfbhk&#34; data-new-window=&#34;true&#34; target=&#34;_blank&#34; rel=&#34;noopener noreferrer&#34;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Alessandro Bastoni&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt; best represents Inter`s defensive excellence. The Nerazzurri number 95 has become a symbol of the evolution of the central defender, proving to be a vital element in the build-up phase and finishing. Bastoni made the most successful &lt;strong&gt;long&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;strong&gt;passes&lt;/strong&gt; (141) and, among defenders with more than 150 attempted long passes, he had the best success rate (64.4%). The Italian raised his level of performance last season, proving to be the star of the show in a brilliant March, where he made &lt;strong&gt;three assists&lt;/strong&gt; in three consecutive matches, against &lt;a href=&#34;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBzxbNtu9Bc&#34; data-new-window=&#34;true&#34; target=&#34;_blank&#34; rel=&#34;noopener noreferrer&#34;&gt;Bologna&lt;/a&gt;, Napoli and Empoli, as well as being elected &lt;a href=&#34;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrysXr0pKxM&#34; data-new-window=&#34;true&#34; target=&#34;_blank&#34; rel=&#34;noopener noreferrer&#34;&gt;Player of the Month&lt;/a&gt; by Lega Serie A. Bastoni ended the year with four assists and one goal in 28 league games.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The Inter player, born in 1999, equals Kalidou Koulibaly (2018/19), Stefan de Vrij&amp;nbsp;(2019/20), Cristian Romero (2020/21), Gleison Bremer (2021/22) and Kim Min-jae (2022/23).&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Another constant presence among the best defenders in Serie A TIM was &lt;strong&gt;Gleison Bremer&lt;/strong&gt;, an irreplaceable rock in the Juventus backline. The strong Brazilian centre-back was the only defender in the league to be in the top three for &lt;strong&gt;duels won&lt;/strong&gt; (second, 187), &lt;strong&gt;defensive headed clearances&lt;/strong&gt; (second, 84) and &lt;strong&gt;headed goals scored&lt;/strong&gt; (third, three). In his second season with Juventus, Bremer confirmed all the good things he had shown in the last few seasons spent in Turin, highlighting his characteristics as a solid and complete defender.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;figure data-asset-id=&#34;7ea99b8f-81a6-4266-ad5f-85ef66c34656&#34; data-image-id=&#34;7ea99b8f-81a6-4266-ad5f-85ef66c34656&#34;&gt;&lt;img src=&#34;https://assets-eu-01.kc-usercontent.com:443/6be6dbcf-fd70-012d-ec80-2d3245f5ce6a/b4d22607-a0bb-4757-8344-6a74b910402d/Sito_HERO_bremer.jpg&#34; data-asset-id=&#34;7ea99b8f-81a6-4266-ad5f-85ef66c34656&#34; data-image-id=&#34;7ea99b8f-81a6-4266-ad5f-85ef66c34656&#34; alt=&#34;&#34;&gt;&lt;/figure&gt;&lt;p&gt;Instead,&lt;strong&gt; Riccardo Calafiori &lt;/strong&gt;was one of the main revelations of the 2023/24 Serie A TIM. In his first season with the Rossoblù, the defender from Roma was able to best express his skills as a modern and technical centre-half within Thiago Motta`s system. The player, born in 2002, was the &lt;strong&gt;youngest&lt;/strong&gt; out of defenders involved in at least five goals in this league, getting &lt;strong&gt;two&lt;/strong&gt; goals, a &lt;a href=&#34;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCRHWPcmjA8&#34; data-new-window=&#34;true&#34; target=&#34;_blank&#34; rel=&#34;noopener noreferrer&#34;&gt;brace against Juventus&lt;/a&gt;, and &lt;strong&gt;five assists&lt;/strong&gt; in 30 games. A &lt;a href=&#34;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ES6CUEpQE4k&#34; data-new-window=&#34;true&#34; target=&#34;_blank&#34; rel=&#34;noopener noreferrer&#34;&gt;cornerstone in Bologna`s defence&lt;/a&gt;, he was also the central defender with the most assists in last season’s Serie A TIM, all provided in 2024 (just like wingers, Nadir Zortea and Bellanova).&lt;/p&gt;&lt;figure data-asset-id=&#34;36cad76d-67f5-45ba-b3a8-19be379faac5&#34; data-image-id=&#34;36cad76d-67f5-45ba-b3a8-19be379faac5&#34;&gt;&lt;img src=&#34;https://assets-eu-01.kc-usercontent.com:443/6be6dbcf-fd70-012d-ec80-2d3245f5ce6a/e6c3996c-c101-4683-af6a-5445e2899a31/Sito_HERO_Calafiori.jpg&#34; data-asset-id=&#34;36cad76d-67f5-45ba-b3a8-19be379faac5&#34; data-image-id=&#34;36cad76d-67f5-45ba-b3a8-19be379faac5&#34; alt=&#34;&#34;&gt;&lt;/figure&gt;&lt;p&gt;However, the defenders who boasted the highest number of goal involvements are two Azzurri widemen, &lt;strong&gt;Raoul Bellanova&lt;/strong&gt; and &lt;strong&gt;Federico Dimarco&lt;/strong&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&#34;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEPrngCkVK4&#34; data-new-window=&#34;true&#34; target=&#34;_blank&#34; rel=&#34;noopener noreferrer&#34;&gt;The Torino winger&lt;/a&gt; had an excellent season under Ivan Juric, becoming the defender to make the &lt;strong&gt;most&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;strong&gt;assists&lt;/strong&gt; in last season’s Serie A TIM, &lt;strong&gt;seven&lt;/strong&gt;, a record for a player from the Granata backline in one of the last 20 Serie A seasons (since 2004/05). Bellanova also successfully completed the most number of &lt;strong&gt;crosses from open play&lt;/strong&gt; in the tournament (44), finding an excellent understanding with Duvan Zapata, to whom he provided five of his seven assists. Furthermore, the former Inter player`s season was further enhanced by a &lt;a href=&#34;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySjvkPU6-e0&#34; data-new-window=&#34;true&#34; target=&#34;_blank&#34; rel=&#34;noopener noreferrer&#34;&gt;superb finish past Falcone against Lecce&lt;/a&gt;, Raoul`s first and only goal for the Toro.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;figure data-asset-id=&#34;9efb3293-e677-480e-8d88-a1cd6683e1ea&#34; data-image-id=&#34;9efb3293-e677-480e-8d88-a1cd6683e1ea&#34;&gt;&lt;img src=&#34;https://assets-eu-01.kc-usercontent.com:443/6be6dbcf-fd70-012d-ec80-2d3245f5ce6a/ed2ac6e6-5ce6-411a-bd66-bf53ee4378ad/Sito_HERO_bellanova.jpg&#34; data-asset-id=&#34;9efb3293-e677-480e-8d88-a1cd6683e1ea&#34; data-image-id=&#34;9efb3293-e677-480e-8d88-a1cd6683e1ea&#34; alt=&#34;&#34;&gt;&lt;/figure&gt;&lt;p&gt;Dimarco was the defender involved in the &lt;strong&gt;most number of goals&lt;/strong&gt; in last season’s Serie A TIM. The Inter winger was the only defender to have scored &lt;strong&gt;five goals&lt;/strong&gt; and provided &lt;strong&gt;six assists&lt;/strong&gt;. The former Parma and Hellas Verona wideman was one of Inzaghi`s leaders in the Nerazzurri`s run to the Scudetto title, showing off all his footballing qualities and scoring some crazy goals, such as the &lt;a href=&#34;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EY0a4Qeosw&#34; data-new-window=&#34;true&#34; target=&#34;_blank&#34; rel=&#34;noopener noreferrer&#34;&gt;masterful volley against Empoli&lt;/a&gt; and the &lt;a href=&#34;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MK29ZGXS1DA&#34; data-new-window=&#34;true&#34; target=&#34;_blank&#34; rel=&#34;noopener noreferrer&#34;&gt;56-metre screamer against Frosinone&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;figure data-asset-id=&#34;3b143ccc-79e5-48a7-a351-0cbf384b751c&#34; data-image-id=&#34;3b143ccc-79e5-48a7-a351-0cbf384b751c&#34;&gt;&lt;img src=&#34;https://assets-eu-01.kc-usercontent.com:443/6be6dbcf-fd70-012d-ec80-2d3245f5ce6a/891c8643-7c9a-449e-9c4d-25d473d14bae/Sito_HERO_dimarco.jpg&#34; data-asset-id=&#34;3b143ccc-79e5-48a7-a351-0cbf384b751c&#34; data-image-id=&#34;3b143ccc-79e5-48a7-a351-0cbf384b751c&#34; alt=&#34;&#34;&gt;&lt;/figure&gt;&lt;p&gt;Out of the seven defenders with more than three goals in the league campaign last season, &lt;strong&gt;Federico Gatti (four goals)&lt;/strong&gt; was the youngest. The last Juventus defender to score more than four goals without penalties in a single Serie A season was Igor Tudor in 2000/01 (6). The centre-back proved to be a reliable partner for Bremer in the Juventus backline, convincing coach Spalletti to call him up for Euro 2024.&lt;br&gt; &lt;br&gt;Finally, the name of a Cagliari player who made a vital contribution in the Sardinians` fight to avoid relegation also emerges from an analysis of defensive statistics.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Alberto Dossena&lt;/strong&gt; made the most &lt;strong&gt;defensive&lt;/strong&gt; &lt;strong&gt;clearances&lt;/strong&gt; in the league, 168, of which &lt;strong&gt;92 were headers&lt;/strong&gt; (also a record in a season). Furthermore, among defenders, the 1998-born Rossoblù player also &lt;strong&gt;won the most aerial duels&lt;/strong&gt; last season in Serie A (122). The number 4 from Cagliari also netted twice to cap off a first positive season in the top flight for him.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(Photo LaPresse)&lt;/p&gt;

Bastoni wins the award for best defender following his splendid year in Inter`s defensive unit. Let`s find out about the other defenders that stood out not only for their defensive qualities, but also for their attacking contributions

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One of the main secrets behind Inter`s 20th Scudetto title was certainly their excellent defensive record. The Champions of Italy conceded just 22 goals in the league, including two on the last day of the season against Hellas Verona, coming very close to breaking Juventus` record of 20 goals conceded in a single league campaign (2011/2012 and 2015/2016). The Inter rearguard also recorded some incredible attacking stats, scoring 18 goals - only Bayern Leverkusen did better in Europe’s top-five leagues (28) - with seven different defenders on target, the best in Europe along with Werder Bremen and Newcastle.<a href="https://www.legaseriea.it/en/media/serie-a/bastoni-is-the-best-defender-13kgefnj0hfbhk" data-new-window="true" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Alessandro Bastoni</a> best represents Inter`s defensive excellence. The Nerazzurri number 95 has become a symbol of the evolution of the central defender, proving to be a vital element in the build-up phase and finishing. Bastoni made the most successful long passes (141) and, among defenders with more than 150 attempted long passes, he had the best success rate (64.4%). The Italian raised his level of performance last season, proving to be the star of the show in a brilliant March, where he made three assists in three consecutive matches, against <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBzxbNtu9Bc" data-new-window="true" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bologna</a>, Napoli and Empoli, as well as being elected <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrysXr0pKxM" data-new-window="true" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Player of the Month</a> by Lega Serie A. Bastoni ended the year with four assists and one goal in 28 league games.The Inter player, born in 1999, equals Kalidou Koulibaly (2018/19), Stefan de Vrij&nbsp;(2019/20), Cristian Romero (2020/21), Gleison Bremer (2021/22) and Kim Min-jae (2022/23).Another constant presence among the best defenders in Serie A TIM was Gleison Bremer, an irreplaceable rock in the Juventus backline. The strong Brazilian centre-back was the only defender in the league to be in the top three for duels won (second, 187), defensive headed clearances (second, 84) and headed goals scored (third, three). In his second season with Juventus, Bremer confirmed all the good things he had shown in the last few seasons spent in Turin, highlighting his characteristics as a solid and complete defender.<figure data-asset-id="7ea99b8f-81a6-4266-ad5f-85ef66c34656" data-image-id="7ea99b8f-81a6-4266-ad5f-85ef66c34656"><img src="https://assets-eu-01.kc-usercontent.com:443/6be6dbcf-fd70-012d-ec80-2d3245f5ce6a/b4d22607-a0bb-4757-8344-6a74b910402d/Sito_HERO_bremer.jpg" data-asset-id="7ea99b8f-81a6-4266-ad5f-85ef66c34656" data-image-id="7ea99b8f-81a6-4266-ad5f-85ef66c34656" alt=""></figure>Instead, Riccardo Calafiori was one of the main revelations of the 2023/24 Serie A TIM. In his first season with the Rossoblù, the defender from Roma was able to best express his skills as a modern and technical centre-half within Thiago Motta`s system. The player, born in 2002, was the youngest out of defenders involved in at least five goals in this league, getting two goals, a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCRHWPcmjA8" data-new-window="true" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">brace against Juventus</a>, and five assists in 30 games. A <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ES6CUEpQE4k" data-new-window="true" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">cornerstone in Bologna`s defence</a>, he was also the central defender with the most assists in last season’s Serie A TIM, all provided in 2024 (just like wingers, Nadir Zortea and Bellanova).<figure data-asset-id="36cad76d-67f5-45ba-b3a8-19be379faac5" data-image-id="36cad76d-67f5-45ba-b3a8-19be379faac5"><img src="https://assets-eu-01.kc-usercontent.com:443/6be6dbcf-fd70-012d-ec80-2d3245f5ce6a/e6c3996c-c101-4683-af6a-5445e2899a31/Sito_HERO_Calafiori.jpg" data-asset-id="36cad76d-67f5-45ba-b3a8-19be379faac5" data-image-id="36cad76d-67f5-45ba-b3a8-19be379faac5" alt=""></figure>However, the defenders who boasted the highest number of goal involvements are two Azzurri widemen, Raoul Bellanova and Federico Dimarco.<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEPrngCkVK4" data-new-window="true" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Torino winger</a> had an excellent season under Ivan Juric, becoming the defender to make the most assists in last season’s Serie A TIM, seven, a record for a player from the Granata backline in one of the last 20 Serie A seasons (since 2004/05). Bellanova also successfully completed the most number of crosses from open play in the tournament (44), finding an excellent understanding with Duvan Zapata, to whom he provided five of his seven assists. Furthermore, the former Inter player`s season was further enhanced by a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySjvkPU6-e0" data-new-window="true" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">superb finish past Falcone against Lecce</a>, Raoul`s first and only goal for the Toro.<figure data-asset-id="9efb3293-e677-480e-8d88-a1cd6683e1ea" data-image-id="9efb3293-e677-480e-8d88-a1cd6683e1ea"><img src="https://assets-eu-01.kc-usercontent.com:443/6be6dbcf-fd70-012d-ec80-2d3245f5ce6a/ed2ac6e6-5ce6-411a-bd66-bf53ee4378ad/Sito_HERO_bellanova.jpg" data-asset-id="9efb3293-e677-480e-8d88-a1cd6683e1ea" data-image-id="9efb3293-e677-480e-8d88-a1cd6683e1ea" alt=""></figure>Dimarco was the defender involved in the most number of goals in last season’s Serie A TIM. The Inter winger was the only defender to have scored five goals and provided six assists. The former Parma and Hellas Verona wideman was one of Inzaghi`s leaders in the Nerazzurri`s run to the Scudetto title, showing off all his footballing qualities and scoring some crazy goals, such as the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EY0a4Qeosw" data-new-window="true" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">masterful volley against Empoli</a> and the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MK29ZGXS1DA" data-new-window="true" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">56-metre screamer against Frosinone</a>.<figure data-asset-id="3b143ccc-79e5-48a7-a351-0cbf384b751c" data-image-id="3b143ccc-79e5-48a7-a351-0cbf384b751c"><img src="https://assets-eu-01.kc-usercontent.com:443/6be6dbcf-fd70-012d-ec80-2d3245f5ce6a/891c8643-7c9a-449e-9c4d-25d473d14bae/Sito_HERO_dimarco.jpg" data-asset-id="3b143ccc-79e5-48a7-a351-0cbf384b751c" data-image-id="3b143ccc-79e5-48a7-a351-0cbf384b751c" alt=""></figure>Out of the seven defenders with more than three goals in the league campaign last season, Federico Gatti (four goals) was the youngest. The last Juventus defender to score more than four goals without penalties in a single Serie A season was Igor Tudor in 2000/01 (6). The centre-back proved to be a reliable partner for Bremer in the Juventus backline, convincing coach Spalletti to call him up for Euro 2024. Finally, the name of a Cagliari player who made a vital contribution in the Sardinians` fight to avoid relegation also emerges from an analysis of defensive statistics.Alberto Dossena made the most defensive clearances in the league, 168, of which 92 were headers (also a record in a season). Furthermore, among defenders, the 1998-born Rossoblù player also won the most aerial duels last season in Serie A (122). The number 4 from Cagliari also netted twice to cap off a first positive season in the top flight for him.(Photo LaPresse)

SERIE A’S BEST DEFENDERS | News

SERIE A’S BEST DEFENDERS

Bastoni wins the award for best defender following his splendid year in Inter`s defensive unit. Let`s find out about the other defenders that stood out not only for their defensive qualities, but also for their attacking contributions

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