Scouting Report: Renato Veiga

Medical completed, announcement soon; Is the Portuguese Swiss Army Knife ready to stay at Chelsea?

Chelsea paused their reported interest in Riccardo Calafiori last week and agreed a deal with FC Basel for Renato Veiga, a 20 year old versatile player midfielder and defender.

Veiga has been scouted for many months by the Chelsea recruitment staff and kept largely quiet during that time. Veiga’s versatility fits in with the “swiss army knife” tag that Enzo Maresca reportedly wants from his players.

Veiga can be deployed in a number of positions along the back line and in the midfield which should play right in with Maresca’s inverted full-back tactic.

For Veiga to make the first team one of Ben Chilwell or Marc Cucurella will have to leave the club, but if one of them are to leave Veiga’s positional versatility should allow him to be a solid back-up for the 2024-25 campaign. 

Renato Veiga Scouting Report

General Information:

• Name: Renato Júnior Luz Veiga

• Date of Birth: July 19, 2003 (20) 

• Nationality: Portuguese

• Position: Defensive Midfielder / Central Midfielder / Center Back / Left Back

Physical Attributes:

• Height: 190 cm (6'3")

• Weight: 82 kg

• Preferred Foot: Left

Technical Skills:

• Passing:

Veiga is an elite passer of the football. He has a wicked left foot and utilizes it to progress the ball up to runners on the wings and through the channels.

Veiga last season averaged 12.39 long ball attempts per 90 which ranks in the top 3% and he completed 4.93 of those which ranks in the top 8% Now his completion rate isn’t that high which you would like the see more in the 50% range, but his confidence to make those passes is really attractive.

If he is the LB that will invert in Maresca’s system it will be interesting to see how those figures alter, assuming that Enzo Fernandez or Romeo Lavia is playing in that 6 position in the box midfield you would then have two players in the base of that box midfield with exceptional passing range. 

His short passing is good, but he is a little slow on the ball, he is a big guy at about 6’3 and almost 200 lbs so moving those legs isn’t as natural for him when getting pressured.

He wasn’t always under immense pressure when making these passes, but against Premier League opposition he will have even less time with faster and stronger midfielders trying to get the ball away from him. 

As you can see in this clip below when defenders are pressuring in on him he is a little slow and is prone to turnovers.

He has a wide variety of passing from a variety of spaces in the left side of the field, he has played a variety of positions on that side and has shown his ability to play the ball through the channels

• Ball Control:

Veiga is very technically sound, coming through Sporting CP’s academy in Portugal he needed to be good enough to make it through their academy. As mentioned before with his passing he is a little slow getting the ball out of his feet, but on the dribble he is a powerful runner and is willing to utilize his frame to shield defenders off of him. 

• Tackling & Aerial Duels:

Strong and clean in tackles. You do notice that he has to tackle sometimes due to his own defensive mistakes, but he is able to clean up the mess left by him or another defender. He is rangy in the sense that he can cover ground quickly, so if it looks like he is a little bit out of position he has the ability to recover quickly. 

He has very good aerial ability, his size and physicality is a big part of that leading to him winning 1.9 aerial duels per 90 which is in the top 10% of Europe. 

Tactical Awareness:

• Positioning/Adaptability:

Veiga’s ability to play multiple positions is an elite trait that not many people have and can do it at a high level. His feel for the game allows him to play in multiple positions at an extremely high level. He can adapt in match too, as the triggers and tactics deemed for Basel, Veiga was switching between a LDM role and left back. It was pretty seamless as he was able to follow his triggers to shift defensively in every position.

• Defensive Contribution:

Strong player and has the ability to be an elite defender, needs to be quicker on his feet, but has the strength and length to cause lots of problems for attack. Probably could be a little bit more proactive in interceptions, but he is a bigger guy so he is happy to let defenders run at him and stop them using his physicality. 

Physical and Mental Attributes:

• Work Rate:

  • High energy and work ethic.

  • Covers a significant amount of ground.

  • Consistently involved in both defensive and offensive plays.

• Strength:

  • Physically strong, able to hold off opponents.

  • Dominant in physical duels and aerial battles.

• Consistency:

  • Generally reliable, though still developing consistency due to youth.

  • Shows maturity and composure on the field when comfortable.

Playing Style:

• Classical defensive midfielder with a modern twis with passing range.

• Balances defensive duties with initiating attacks.

• Good feel of controlling the pace and tempo of the game.

• Strong presence in the midfield, providing stability and support.

Career Development and Potential:

• Developed through Sporting CP’s youth academy.

• First trip abroad cut short at Augsburg, wasn’t given much of an opportunity.

• Got valuable experience at Basel

• Shows potential to become an impact midfielder/leftback with further development.

Summary:

Renato Veiga is a promising young defensive midfielder with a solid all-around game. His physical presence, tactical intelligence, and technical skills make him a valuable asset.

I wonder specifically on if Veiga will stay at Chelsea this upcoming season regardless of a sale of a current left back option.

I personally believe that Veiga’s development should continue where he plays a lot and if Chelsea cannot move one of their current leftbacks I wonder if those minutes will be available to him this season.

However, if they do move on from a Ben Chilwell, I do believe you could play Veiga in the Conference League, cup matches, and could be a suitable substitution at the PL level right away.

Dylan