Hiroki Ito is a defender, but he has a very good passing ability. He showed that against Bochum. He can help Jung Woo-young.
Stuttgart recorded a 5-0 victory over Bochum in the first round of the 2023-24 German Bundesliga at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Stuttgart, Germany, on Sept. 19 at 10:30 p.m. ET. Stuttgart, who barely managed to stay up after suffering a relegation battle last season, made a refreshing start to the season.
They bombed Bochum. After a monotonous Bochum performance, Stuttgart broke the deadlock with a Sergio Jurassic goal. The Jurassic finish was good, but the Ito pass was incredible. Ito came to Stuttgart on loan in 2021 and made the move permanent. He has made the leap to the first team and has made a solid impression in the Bundesliga.
His main position is center back, but he can also play left back. His skills on the ball are very good and his forward movement is excellent. His passing is particularly good with his left foot. As a left-footed player, Ito’s strengths are his forward passes and long passes from the back. He was a good option for Stuttgart when they were frustrated. Even the assist for Jurace’s goal was a crazy pass from Ito that led to the goal.
Dan-Axel Zagadou added another goal after Jurasi’s goal. Silas completed his hat trick to make it 4-0, and Juracek made it 5-0 in the 32nd minute. While Jurace, Silas, and Chris Fürich were the stars of the show, it was Ito’s steady defensive work 바카라 at the back, left and center that stood out. In addition to his assist, Ito also demonstrated his buildup ability by consistently supplying forward passes.
Ito had two key passes on the day and a passing success rate of 89%. He had 90 touches, a 100% ground-contest win rate (3 attempts, 3 successful), 2 clears, and 1 interception. Soccer stats outlet Couch Score gave Ito a rating of 7.9, higher than Zagadou (7.6), who also scored a goal. The official Bundesliga channel named Ito one of the best eleven players of the round. Ito celebrated with his Stuttgart teammates, including Jurace, Fürich, and Pascal Stenzel, who also made the list.
Ito’s kicking ability can also help Jung Woo-young. Coach Sebastian Hoeneß utilizes Jung as an attacking midfielder. Often positioned in the center of the second line, he was active on the flanks, in defense, and up front. Moving through a lot of space, he had some great chances but was unable to convert them into goals. While he didn’t link up with Ito during the match, we can expect to see Ito delivering passes and Jeong cutting into space to create attacking routes in the future.