Lazio manager applauds Dele-Bashiru’s Serie A debut, outlines areas of improvement

Published on by Emmanuel Ayamga

Lazio manager Marco Baroni has described Fisayo Dele-Bashiru as a “devastating” talent after the midfielder impressed on his Serie A debut against Venezia on Sunday.

Dele-Bashiru, who is on a season-long loan at Lazio from Turkish side Hatayspor, was handed a starting spot as the Eagles opened their 2024/25 campaign with an impressive 3-1 home victory over the newly promoted side.

Deployed on the left side of a three-man midfield, the 23-year-old put in a shift as a double from Mattia Zaccagni and another strike from Valentin Castellanos saw Lazio come from a goal down to win the game.

The Nigeria international’s performance against Venezia impressed his manager, who highlighted the midfielder’s great potential in his post-match press conference.

Lazio manager demands more from Fisayo Dele-Bashiru despite impressive debut

Baroni said the Manchester City academy graduate will be given every opportunity to excel but noted that there were some aspects of his game that needed to improve.

“Dele-Bashiru has great potential, he is a boy who must understand our football and play, train hard and play. We will give him the chance to play, we have many good midfielders who are growing,” the Lazio boss told DAZN.

“The player must improve his posture because he often has a closed posture that forces him to play behind. When he opens his shoulder and turns he is devastating, he has a physicality that cannot be held back.

“He must become a ball recoverer but it is not easy. I saw where he played, it is a complete upheaval and his participation is extraordinary. I forced his presence today from the first minute to reward this participation.”

Fisayo Dele-Bashiru’s outing against Venezia saw him record a 96% pass accuracy, make two key tackles and recover the ball 11 times. He also had a 100% dribble success and won 50% of his ground duels.

Lazio manager applauds Dele-Bashiru’s Serie A debut, outlines areas of improvement

Emmanuel Ayamga

Emmanuel Ayamga is a Ghanaian journalist with a little over five years of experience writing about African football.

His articles and features have been published in renowned news media like Pulse Ghana, The Guardian, DW, Al Jazeera and Sportskeeda. His bylines can also be found in the UK journals World Soccer Magazine and These Football Times.