Best Alternatives to João Carvalho

Playing Style Analysis

Carvalho is the kind of midfielder who makes the final third feel smaller—a player whose game is built around arriving in dangerous spaces and punishing teams for letting him do so. His 0.25 goals and 0.46 assists per 90 both land in the top 10% of Liga Portugal midfielders, numbers that quietly tell a story of consistent, repeatable impact rather than lucky streaks. His passes into the final third rank in the top 20%, confirming this isn't accidental proximity to goal—he's actively driving play forward. The three closest DNA matches to João Carvalho:

• Gonçalo Moreira(87% match) — A Creator. Statistically, he stands out as an elite creator (3.3 key passes/90), a proven goalscorer (1.30 goals/90), a prolific assist provider (0.58 assists/90) and top 10% creator in the league.
• Rodrigo Zalazar(86% match) — Zalazar is the kind of midfielder who makes defenders nervous and analysts reach for the asterisk at the same time. His 0.73 goals per 90 places him in the top 5% of Liga Portugal midfielders—a genuinely elite output that suggests a player arriving in the box with real conviction, not just volume.
• Gabri Veiga(85% match) — A Creator. Statistically, he stands out as an elite creator (2.1 key passes/90), a constant goal threat (2.5 shots/90), a prolific assist provider (0.44 assists/90), active in the tackle (2.3 tackles/90), creates high-quality scoring opportunities (0.50 big chances/90), heavily involved in play (59 touches/90), active off the ball (2.5 press score/90), contributing to defensive transitions and top 10% creator in the league.

Similarity uses per-90 performance across playing-style dimensions. How Player DNA matching works →