Joelson Fernandes (17) - Sporting Club de Portugal

One of Sporting's top talents for Arteta - A thread!

#Joelson #Fernandes #AFC #Arsenal

Joelson is currently playing for Sporting and was at the of 17 already a main part of their U23s.

He already gave his debut for the first team against Gil Vicente.

Sporting tries to integrate him into their first squad for a reason. Joelson is one of there top 3 talents.

He might even be ahead of Quaresma and Mendes in terms of potential.

In his contract, Joelson does have a release clause, which would allow him to leave the club for 45 Mio € and become one of the most expensive teenagers in the world.

Is he worth the price?

Joelson is an excellent dribbler and is capable of playing in almost every role on the wing. The Portuguese can operate as a classical winger, inverted winger or even as a second striker.

Personally, I think that LW is his best position as a right-fitter.

With his explosive acceleration, excellent (!) agility and balance, it's almost impossible to win any 1vs1 duels against him

Aside from his speed, the 17-year old is also really creative in his dribbling and knows how to time his feints and accelerations

With his timing and speed of execution, he knows how, as well as when to take the risk and beat the opponent. If he has done that successfully, he likes to go drive centrally and towards the goal

He differs himself from other dribbles with his athletic

His athletic isn't good, well-rounded or average - it is outstanding. His coordination is excellent, as well as his agility and balance.

Sometimes it even seems like he's too agile for himself.

Due to his excellent athletic, he's a real threat for counter-attacks and even makes the right decisions in there.

He knows where to carry the ball and off the ball, how to position himself perfectly.

Joelson loves speed and always offers a certain "x-factor" to the game.

But it has to be said, that Joelson knows when and how to use his dribbling efficiently for the team. If he has to slow down the game, he's still doing that and not going for another dribbling.

Another interesting aspect of his game and what differs him from other talents.

Aside from that, he's shooting technique is really interesting, but still raw.

He needs to be more composed in front of the goal to score more often.

It would have been scary in case he would already have been clinical at the age of 17 though.

His decision making after completing a dribbling isn't necessarily bad, but his end product is a bit disappointing compared to his potential.

He knows what he should do next, but isn't capable of completing his final action cleanly most of the time.

He's 17 though.

Also, Joelson definitely has to work on his body in terms of robustness. Even when it might seem like he's more benefiting from his current weight than losing, he will still definitely have problems in the world of senior football.

He has to find a good balance right here.

Another negative aspect of his game, is his work against the ball. It isn't necessarily bad once again, but not the stage it has to be to compete in the Premier League.

He still has gotten a lot of time to improve right here at the age of 17.

Conclusion:

Joelson deserves to be named one Portugals best talents and being linked with almost every possible top European club.

His dribbling is extraordinary and you might even say unique, but his end product definitely deserves a lot of work though.

In case he improves right here and gets more stable, he definitely has the potential to become one of the worlds best wingers.

His potential is really, really high. Just watch him play once and you will immediately recognise that.

End of the thread.

I scouted him by myself a few times, but @halb_monkey definitely deserves credits right here. He gave me my first impressions about him, when he got linked with my club (BVB).

One of my favourite twitter accounts. Follow him now!

@halb_monkey