Relegated Ballers: Sassuolo
Relegated Ballers: Sassuolo 2023/24
As the 2023/24 season draws to a close, the transfer window is fast approaching. Clubs around the world will be looking to strengthen their squads in preparation for the next campaign, and as far as getting good deals is concerned, there are few better places to look than relegated clubs. Using smarterscout’s league benchmarking models and advanced metrics, we will pick out some such players in this series.
Besides Bologna’s brilliant campaign that culminated in qualification for next season’s UEFA Champions League, the most surprising story in Italian football this season was Sassuolo’s shock relegation.
The Neroverdi had been consistent mid-table finishers since they last won promotion from Serie B in 2012/13, even qualifying for Europe on one occasion. Over the years, they had built up the financial capacity to maintain the tenth-highest player wage bill in Serie A according to Capology’s data, so the bottom of the table was not where they were expected to be.
A combination of inadequate squad building and, of course, poor performances have led them precisely there, though, as Sassuolo’s fate was sealed with a game to spare after they lost to fellow relegation-battlers Cagliari on the penultimate weekend of the season. Their squad still has a fair bit of talent, though.
Domenico Berardi (RW/CAM, 1994)
Despite the other issues we previously touched on, it would be hard to refute the suggestion that Sassuolo would have stayed up had Domenico Berardi remained fit all season. Unfortunately, that was not the case as he missed the second half of the season with a knee injury followed by a major achilles tendon injury.
Berardi joined Sassuolo’s youth academy in 2010 and has been there ever since, despite regular links and interest from Serie A’s top clubs. Even as many of his teammates moved on, he stuck around and established himself as a senior Italian international, going on to win the Euros in 2021.
Continuing his club career in Emilia-Romagna, he has consistently delivered the goods for Sassuolo thanks to his excellent forward passing and shooting threat cutting in from the right while also working very hard without the ball.
Berardi very clearly is a Serie A star so his departure from a relegated Sassuolo seems quite likely, not least because he is their highest earner by far. The likes of Juventus and Milan have been linked with him so far, but any Italian club needing a right winger should be lining up for his signature.
Kristian Thorsvedt (CM, 1999)
Kristian Thorsvedt was one of the many Sassuolo players who did not have the best of seasons this term. He was a victim of his own versatility, being shafted around all over midfield amidst coaching changes at the club. With consistent game time in the very middle of the park, though, he has shown his quality both in Serie A and in Belgium with Genk.
The Norwegian midfielder can do a bit of everything from winning duels and recovering the ball to popping up in and around the box and bagging a few goals. In between that, he covers a decent amount of ground and also offers good quality on the ball with his passing and dribbling.
By virtue of not quite being elite at anything, Thorsvedt is prone to being too thinly spread as he was this season, but his overall quality should be of value to many clubs in top-flight leagues. According to our model’s estimation, he could either return to a place like Belgium or the Netherlands and establish himself as a standout in a top team or move on to a mid-table club in France or Germany and continue putting in the shifts.
Thorsvedt’s contract at Sassuolo runs till 2027, but their relegation means he is unlikely to fetch an eight-digit transfer fee – which is what they paid to bring him in from Belgium.
Armand Laurienté (LW/CAM, 1998)
In that same window, Sassuolo also signed young Armand Laurienté from Lorient.
He joined them as a very exciting raw talent and certainly terrorized many a Serie A full-back with his electric dribbling off the left wing in his debut season, returning with seven goals and six assists in the league. This term, though, he was frustratingly deployed in a more central position, where his dribbling, attacking output and ball retention all dropped off in tandem.
At 25 years old now, it is high time for Laurienté to move to a club that can fully unlock his unquestionable potential. Sassuolo’s relegation may prove to be a blessing in disguise for him in that respect, as his suitors which reportedly include Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham United and Monaco could get him for a cut-price of around €10 million.
Marcus Holmgren Pedersen (RB, 2000)
Marcus Holmgren Pedersen joined Sassuolo on loan last summer after winning the Eredivisie with Feyenoord. His deal reportedly included a €6 million buy option, but the Neroverdi’s relegation has voided it. As a result, he will go back to Rotterdam this summer.
Feyenoord already had three right backs in their squad this season and a couple more out on loan elsewhere, so they certainly do not need another player in that position even though a new head coach will be coming in. Pedersen is among those likely to leave, and our model believes he should be on the radar of clubs looking for a defensively solid right back.
His defensive quality remained excellent in Italy, where he obviously had to get through a lot more work for a relegation-battling side. The Norwegian defender’s strength in ground duels stands out, also making him a good forward carrier with the ball at his feet. Clearly, he has all the qualities to be a shrewd signing for a mid-table club in one of Europe’s top leagues.
By Neel Shelat
