Claudinho – Red Bull Bragantino’s essential playmaker

The number 10 in Brazil takes on a mythical level of prestige amongst Brazilian fans and players alike with Neymar currently donning the shirt while Ronaldinho and Kaka wore the number. This summer at the Olympics, Claudinho will don the shirt as he took a more circuitous route to it than some of his predecessors. The 24-year-old scored an astounding 18 goals in last season Brasiliero Serie A as there have even been some Brazilian fans who believe he should be playing with Brazilian Copa America side rather than the Brazilian Olympic side. After interest from Sao Paulo and Flamengo, Red Bull Bragantino have made it abundantly clear that his future lies in Europe rather than Brazil. RB Leipzig has been touted as a destination but they will have to engage in a bidding war with other European clubs.

Luiz Claudinho Zurlo or Claudio Luiz Rodrigues Parise Leonel has spent the larger part of his career under the auspices of Santos’ gilded academy which developed the likes of Neymar and Pele. He joined the academy at the age of 5 as his father worked and his mother raised him as it took one look into the eyes of his mother to convince her to drive him to the academy and back every day. His mother would have to take on employment to be able to afford to drive him to youth training as Claudinho was part of the academy from the age of 5 to the age of 18 as he saw opportunities would be limited and decided to join Corinthians where he made his professional debut but continued to find a logjam in between him and the first team with what he has described a lack of opportunities.

However, his experience at Corinthians was not a complete failure as he would work under current Brazilian National Team coach, Tite, who is one of the more astute tactical minds in Brazilian football, which was transformative for his transition into professional football. Tite may not see out the summer as the Brazilian National Team coach due to the politics of the last few days but his influence on Claudinho and his possible future with the Brazilian National Team cannot be understated. As Claudinho came to terms with his looming departure with Corinthians, his mother would find him in tears as she would once again provide a shoulder to lean on with emotional support and encouragement to continue chasing his dreams.

The 24-year-old would face two loans to Red Bull Bragantino and Santo Andre before being having 50% of his rights sold to Ponte Preta, a Brasiliero Serie B developing hub for young Brazilian talent before two loans to Red Bull Brasil and Oeste. Claudinho would eventually find his way to Red Bull Bragantino where he would become the best player in the Brasiliero Serie A, not only for his goalscoring exploits but due to the fact that the whole attack under Mauricio Barbieri filters through him with his finger prints on most chances they create as well as in their entertaining style of play. Red Bull Bragantino began last season in the relegation zone but Claudinho’s goals steered them to a place in the Copa Sudamericana group stage as well as progressing to the knockout phase.

Claudinho plays as a second-striker in a 4-4-2 shape as well as an attacking midfielder in a 4-2-3-1 shape as he is also gifted in receiving possession and connecting play in the wide area. He is a demonstrative creative player with a technical skillset that would allow him to play in a variety of roles across the pitch, even in a deeper-lying midfield role in a 4-3-3 shape. His ability to receive possession in the nine space as well as the ten space and work connections in between the lines is one of the things that make him so integral to his side. He can also string together attacking moves from the deeper areas while constantly looking to make progressive runs.

At home to Deportivo Tolima in the Copa Sudamericana, he received a deflection from an opposition cross to nonchalantly flick on a pass to a teammate and make a run into space to receive possession and work a one-touch pass to string together a counter-attack with his movement and two passes. He would work another fantastic passing combination when he regained possession in the defensive phase, to receive a pass and flick the ball over the head of his marker to work a pass to the nine space to receive a lay-off to drive the ball to the wide areas before cutting back inside and playing another phenomenal line-breaking pass to the nine space.

Claudinho is unique as he meshes his technical quality with a unique interpretation of space and movement as a raumdeuter as he is able to receive possession and connect with teammates in the half-spaces and wide-zones to string together attacking moves. Against Tolima, he received possession hemmed into tight quarters by the touchline to elegantly play a pass through his marker’s legs to facilitate a switch ball to the opposite flank. At home to Bahia, he received possession in build-up to swivel and thread a pass into the channels for Helinho to play a back-heel to him as the 24-year-old played a back-heel of his own to the centre-back. One of the main facets of his game that makes Claudinho such an intriguing player is his ability to drop deep to receive possession, swivel and play a pass into the channels or thread a pass in between the lines with press resistance to make a run to receive possession again.

He continued to demonstrate his ability on the turn against Flamengo when he received possession with his back to the opposition goal to elegantly flick the ball off his marker to spin past him and drive into the opposition half to win a foul. He would demonstrate his ability in between the lines again when he received possession on the half-turn as two players closed him down for Claudinho to beat them by taking a touch with his left foot to prod the ball to a teammate in the next line with his right foot. At home to Santos, in the Paulistao, he should have had an assist when he received possession in the ten space to drive to the opposite flank to make it seem as if he would spread the ball to the wide left flank only to poke a through ball to a runner with the outside of his right boot to put an attacker through on goal to have his shot saved. He would score a goal of his own with the outside of his right boot as Red Bull Bragantino won a turnover in the opposition half to work the ball to their playmaker who thrashed the ball into the bottom right corner, leaving the keeper standing helplessly on the line.

In the Copa Libertadores at home to Emelec, he received possession on the left flank, closer to the by-line to raise his head and work an immaculate cut-back for a teammate. Claudinho would then receive possession in the nine space to swivel past two players and work a pass to his strike partner to move into space and receive possession again to play a pass to the wide areas before dropping deeper to receive possession again and switch the ball to the opposite flank. The 24-year-old would then be involved in the creation of another opportunity receiving the ball on the left flank to drive the ball into the both with his strike partner making a run inside him as Claudinho did not go with the most obvious pass, instead deciding to work an impudent chip to the right corner of the box for a teammate to have a shot saved.

In Red Bull Bragantino’s Brasiliero Serie A opener against Chapecoense, he received possession in the left half-space, faking like he was going to drive the ball inside but shifting the ball to the outside of his left boot and spinning past pressure to thread a pass to Helinho in the next line to instigate an attacking move. He would work another press resistant passing combination by calmly laying off a pass to his fullback in the left half-space who played a ball in between the lines for Claudinho to receive a lay-off of his own to lob a pass for the winger to burst into the channels and have a cross saved. The 24-year-old would receive possession in the ten space to swivel and have a shot cannon off the crossbar. He would create another opportunity with a cross into the box for a teammate to chest the ball and have a strike saved.

Claudinho has the ability to be a chance creator as a central attacking midfielder, a wide playmaker and attacking conduit as an inverted left winger while he has the technical skillset to operate as a press resistant and creative 8 in the deeper areas. He also provides a threat in the opposition box, scoring a variety of goals, be it rebounds from free-kicks or curlers from the left corner of the box as well as long range strikes from outside the box. His movement and initiative in possession in between the lines have made Red Bull Bragantino one of the more interesting sides to watch on the continent with the 24-year-old acting as chief orchestrator, receiving the ball in a wide variety of areas with a wide variety of roles. Claudinho is also strong defensively as Barbieri has tasked him with leading the pressure phase. He chases his markers with tigerish intent winning early turnovers while being willing to track his markers into the deeper areas of the pitch. He has become a known quantity to European clubs as he will have a plethora of scouts watching him during the Olympics later this summer.

"The key [for the team's progress] was managing to find a playing style, an identity that would get the best out of the players," Red Bull Bragantino’s Head Coach, Barbieri told Goal in March. "The best example of that is Claudinho, because of the season he had and all the awards he has received - but it is not just him, other players too. Of course, Claudinho has always been a very talented player, with great potential, but the fact he was in an organized team, which tried to get the best out of him, was important for him to have this great season. He is among the best players active in Brazil right now, no doubt about it, if not the very best. That is due to his ability to break through, be creative, especially around the opposition goal, to look for surprising options which get the fans off the couch. He has a great talent for finishing in front of the net." 

Claudinho’s contract currently ends in 2024 but his days at Red Bull Bragantino are numbered with a move to Europe being touted in the last few months. RB Leipzig have shown interest, but Red Bull’s Brazilian franchise have communicated that Leipzig would have to pay the same fee as other clubs in Europe. The 24-year-old would fit in at Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds United in one of his free-8 roles as he has the ability to participate in their wide interchanges and would be a phenomenal replacement for Pablo Hernandez. Arsenal and Lyon with their Brazilian Directors would also provide a great fit as for the former, he would have the ability to play with Emile Smith-Rowe and could be the closest thing to Santi Cazorla that they could find on the market. Arsenal already have Brazilian players that Claudinho will be playing with on the Olympic Squad such as Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Magalhaes. Claudinho will certainly be one of the most coveted players on the market as it will be interesting to see his next move.