Best Alternatives to Manuel Akanji

Top 3 Alternatives to Manuel Akanji

1. 1.Pierre Kalulu87% DNA match·Juventus€32.0M
2. 2.Berat Djimsiti87% DNA match·Atalanta€5.0M
3. 3.Nico Elvedi87% DNA match·Borussia Mönchengladbach€4.0M

Ranked by AI DNA similarity — 768 dimensions across playing style, pressing intensity, and tactical fit.

Playing Style Analysis

Akanji builds play with the precision of a midfielder wearing a centre-back's shirt—his 92.2% pass accuracy sits in the top 10% of Serie A defenders, and his 67.5 passes per 90 ranks in the top 5%, making him one of the league's most active distributors from deep. His 6.43 passes into the final third per 90 places him in the top 20%, meaning his value isn't just in keeping possession clean but in genuinely advancing it. The counterintuitive read here: his aerial win rate of 44.1% looks soft, yet he wins 1.62 aerials per 90 above the positional average—he's simply not seeking duels he can avoid, which speaks to intelligence rather than deficiency. The three most similar players to Manuel Akanji by playing style are:

• Pierre Kalulu(87% match) — Kalulu has quietly become one of Serie A's most progressive defenders — a ball-carrier in disguise wearing a centre-back's number. His 60.8 passes per 90 and 6.23 passes into the final third both land in the top 20-30% of defenders in the league, figures that reveal a player comfortable initiating attacks rather than simply recycling possession. His key passes per 90 (top 20%) are genuinely remarkable for a defender — higher than many midfielders — suggesting his influence on the final third is being systematically undervalued by clubs still scanning only defensive metrics.
• Berat Djimsiti(87% match) — Djimsiti has carved out a quietly indispensable role at Atalanta through a blend of aerial authority and positional discipline that rarely generates highlights but consistently generates clean sheets. His 2.90 aerials won per 90 places him in the top 20% of Serie A defenders—a figure that understates his real value, because in Atalanta's high-pressing system, winning second balls isn't cosmetic, it's structural. His 89.9% pass accuracy and 54.9 passes per 90 both rank in the top fifth of the league, meaning he's not just a stopper—he circulates possession with genuine comfort.
• Nico Elvedi(87% match) — A Ball-Playing CB. Statistically, he stands out as commanding in the air (8.9 clearances/90), meticulous in distribution (93% pass accuracy) and wins the physical battle (69% duel success).

Similarity is calculated using per-90 performance data across multiple playing style dimensions. How Player DNA matching works →