Stanislav Lobotka, Slovak Star, Ready To Beat England With His Intelligence In Central Line

Stanislav Lobotka, Slovakia's smart midfielder (photo: x @TheNapoliZone)

JAKARTA - Stanislav Lobotka, Slovakia's smart midfielder, is ready to face England in the last 16 of Euro 2024, Sunday 30 June at Arena AufSchalkeGelsenkirchen,Gelsenkirchen, Germany,with the determination to control the match with his distinctive playing style.

Midfielder 5 feet 6 inches tall with a simple look, Lobotka may look like an ordinary player, but whoever sees him playing will soon realize he is a true midfield maestro.

Playing in the midfield position, Lobotka is known as an old-style midfield artist in modern play. With his extraordinary passing ability, Lobotka has completed 172 of the 184 passes in this tournament, showing complete passability: length, short, medium; to the left, right, front, and rear. He is the one who has the key to Slovakia's game, and if England let him control the game, it would be very difficult to snatch the ball from him.

Lobotka's quality was recognized by several world football legends. Xavi Hernandez, who won 28 trophies with Barcelona and Spain, and Andrea Pirlo, gave high praise to Lobotka. Prior to the Champions League match between Barcelona and Napoli, Xavi expressed his admiration for Lobotka and called him the player he wanted to recruit from the opposing team. Pirlo also called him the "best playmaker in the Italian league."

Lobotka's career grew rapidly after joining Napoli. Although not many Premier League clubs were interested in him as he played at Celta Vigo, Napoli cleverly paid 20 million pounds to sign him. The decision proved to be right because Lobotka was the key member of Napoli's team to win their third Serie A title in history, and the first without Diego Maradona.

Now, despite nearly 30 years old, Lobotka seems happy at Napoli and has no plans to move to the Premier League. He enjoyed life in Napoli with beautiful weather, stunning beaches, and fantastic food.

England needs to be careful with the threats brought by Lobotka. If they repeat the mistakes in ignoring creative midfielders as they do with Pirlo, Modric, Frenkie de Jong, Jorginho, and Marco Verratti, Lobotka can be a serious threat. Experience shows that ignoring creative midfielders in large matches can be fatal.

This Sunday's match will be a big test for England. If they fail to deal with Lobotka, they can be in big trouble and face the risk of being knocked out of the tournament. All eyes will be on Lobotka and her ability to control the game, and if she succeeds, England must prepare for unpleasant possibilities.