The Best XI of Serie A Round 2: Lazio Trio in Sixth Heaven

AC Milan, Italian Football, Lazio, Roma, Serie A, Serie A 2021-2022

Serie A returned to action just over a week ago, but has already embarked on a short holiday as the first international break of the new season begins this week.

In Round 2, the big boys of Italian football have followed up their impressive performances from matchday one: Inter, Milan, Roma, Napoli and Lazio all won for the second week in a row. Juventus are the only team of last season’s top seven to struggle so far, this time losing to Empoli on Saturday.

Here we take a look at the best statistical XI of Serie A Round 2 in collaboration with the FotMob app.

Goalkeeper – Guglielmo Vicario (Empoli)

The 24-year-old Empoli goalkeeper had one of the most memorable games of his career so far against Juventus on Saturday.

The Italian was instrumental in his side’s stunning 1-0 win over the Bianconeri and was named Man of the Match for his superb performance.

Vicario stopped 5 opponent shots, 3 of which were diving saves, equating to 1.58 Expected Goals Conceded (xGC), meaning that he prevented Empoli from conceding almost 2 goals.

FotMob Rating – 8.5

Right-Back / Right Wing-Back – Rick Karsdorp (Roma)

Roma picked up their second win of the season, beating Salernitana 4-0, and have conceded just one goal so far.

Dutch right-back Rick Karsdorp was part of the back four that kept a clean sheet at the weekend and seems to play an important role in Mourinho’s tactics.

The 26-year-old won 67% of his duels against Salernitana’s forwards (4/6), recovered the ball 8 times and made 1 interception. Karsdorp also completed 87% of all pass attempts (72/83), 4 of which were key passes.

FotMob Rating – 8.3

Right Center-Back – Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli)

After much speculation about Kalidou Koulibaly’s future with Napoli last summer, gossips about the Senegalese center-back leaving the club have quietened down considerably.

The 30-year-old has had a strong start to the season, helping Napoli to two wins from two games, with the team conceding just one goal in those two matches.

In the game against Genoa, Koulibaly led the backline by example, winning 64% of his duels (7/11), making 2 successful tackles (100% success rate) and recovering the ball an impressive 10 times.

FotMob Rating – 8.2

Left Center-Back – Berat Djimsiti (Atalanta)

The departure of Cristian Romero meant Atalanta’s remaining center-backs had to step up to the challenge, and they did so with flying colors in the first two games.

This week replacing Jose Luis Palomino in our top XI of Round 2 is the 28-year-old Berat Djimsiti, who helped Atalanta keep their first clean sheet of the season.

The Albanian won 73% of his duels against Bologna (8/11), including 5 successfully won aerial duels, and also made a remarkable 14 ball recoveries.

FotMob Rating – 8.0

Left-Back / Left Wing-Back – Theo Hernandez (Milan)

With the black and blue side of Milano losing one of their key players in a full-back position in Achraf Hakimi, the red and black side were more fortunate to retain their attack-minded full-back Theo Hernandez.

The Frenchman registered his first assist of the season against Cagliari and looks sharp and ready to surpass his performance of last season. The 23-year-old also completed 85% of his passes (44/52) and made 9 ball recoveries.

FotMob Rating – 8.3

Central Midfielder – Luis Alberto (Lazio)

Lazio were one of the teams less talked about before the new season, but their start to the 2021/22 campaign has been more than impressive, winning both games and topping the Serie A table ahead of the international break.

At the weekend, Lazio swept Spezia off their feet 6-1 and one of last season leading players Luis Alberto had a memorable performance.

The Spaniard assisted 3 of Lazio’s 6 goals, equating to 50% of contribution, and also scored the team’s sixth goal himself. He also completed an outstanding 93% of all passes (83/89).

FotMob Rating – 9.7

Right Midfielder – Nahuel Molina (Udinese)

In the summer, Udinese lost Rodrigo De Paul, their standout performer of last season. The Argentine was a driving force in Udinese’s midfield, scoring goals and providing assists.

This season, Luca Gotti’s men will have to cope without his presence, and one player who rose to the challenge in the club’s second game of the season is De Paul’s fellow Argentine Nahuel Molina.

The 23-year-old scored (xG 0.44) and assisted (xA 0.38) in Udinese’s 3-0 win over Venezia. Molina also completed 73% of all pass attempts (37/51), 4 of which were key passes.

FotMob Rating – 9.0

Central Attacking Midfielder – Lorenzo Pellegrini (Roma)

Roma began their 2021/22 Serie A campaign in superb form, scoring seven goals in two games and looking like a serious contender to challenge for a top four spot this season.

One of the key players in Roma’s attack is the central attacking midfielder Lorenzo Pellegrini, who opened his goal account against Salernitana, netting Roma’s first and fourth goals.

What is even more impressive is the fact that the Italian scored 2 goals at an xG (expected goals) of just 0.16. He also recorded a reasonable shooting accuracy, with 3 of his 5 attempts hitting the target (60% accuracy).

FotMob Rating – 9.0

Left Midfielder / Left Winger – Felipe Anderson (Lazio)

Another Lazio representative on our top XI of Round 2 list is Lazio’s left-sided midfielder Felipe Anderson.

The Brazilian returned to Lazio after previously spending five seasons in the Biancocelesti colours from 2013 to 2018 and scored his first Serie A goal (xG 0.31) in more than three years against Spezia.

FotMob Rating – 8.6

Striker – Olivier Giroud (Milan)

After running out of steam towards the end of last season, Milan began the 2020/21 campaign in fine form and were one of only five teams to win their first two games.

With Zlatan Ibrahimovic injured, the game against Cagliari was the perfect opportunity for Milan’s latest signing Olivier Giroud to show that he is a sufficient replacement for the legendary Swede.

The Frenchman opened his account for the 2021/22 season with 2 goals against Cagliari (xG 1.58) and also created 2 big goal-scoring opportunities for his teammates.

FotMob Rating – 9.1

Striker – Ciro Immobile (Lazio)

We round off our best XI of Round 2 with yet another Lazio player who made the biggest contribution to the team’s 6-1 thrashing of Spezia.

Ciro Immobile scored his sixth Serie A career hat-trick at the weekend (xG 1.57) and recorded an impressive 67% shooting accuracy, with 4 of his 6 attempts on goal hitting the target.

FotMob Rating – 9.2

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