Scout Report – Arthur Melo
Among the list of young targets for January, one name refuses to die down and that is of Gremio midfielder Arthur Melo. Although he is linked with several big clubs, Chelsea and Barcelona are believed to be the front-runners in landing the immensely talented youngster.
Gremio, however, are unlikely to be willing to let Melo leave without a strong fight. After all, he has been a gem in the middle of the park for the club and it is very tough to find mature and intelligent midfielders at such a young age. He is tied down to the Arena do Gremio until January 2019, and the Brazilians are likely to demand quite a hefty fee. That said, money has never been an issue for Barcelona or Chelsea. Meanwhile, let’s take a closer look at the player’s profile.
History
Born in 1996 in Goiania, Brazil, Melo began his career at the age of 12, playing for his hometown club Goias. However, in 2010, he was spotted by Gremio scouts and he joined the club to further his development process. He put up a string of impressive performances and was promoted to their youth team in 2015. Soon enough, he received a big breakthrough which allowed him to make his debut for the Brazilian club and there has been no looking back for Melo ever since.
As far as his international career is concerned, Melo has represented Brazil at U17 and U20 levels. He even received a call-up to the senior team recently where he played against Bolivia and Chile in World Cup qualifying matches.
Playing Style
Often compared to Barcelona’s modern-day legend Andres Iniesta, Melo is an out-and-out midfielder by nature. His passing ability and vision remain unparalleled even though he is so young. At his age, it is very easy to chase flashy, entertaining tricks to make his skills look attractive but Melo’s football boasts of deep substance. He may not be in the news for scoring goals but players like Iniesta and Mesut Ozil rarely ever do. And yet, their influence on the team cannot be replicated by any other player.
Melo’s Future
With both Barcelona and Chelsea interested in him, the youngster will have a tough decision to make, if at all he wants to move. However, the Blues are not really renowned for providing chances to youngsters and limited playing time could prove to be detrimental for Melo who is at a very crucial period in his career.
Hence, if the choice were to come between these two clubs, perhaps he would be better off by choosing to move to Barcelona instead.