Best Alternatives to Mauricio Lemos

Playing Style Analysis

Lemos is a ball-dominant defensive sentinel whose elite spatial awareness allows him to dismantle opposition attacks before they materialize. While operating in a Tier C side, he manages to dictate tempo with 55.3 passes per 90—placing him in the league’s top 20% for volume—yet it is his defensive anticipation that defines his profile. His 1.97 interceptions per 90 rank him in the top 10% of Serie A defenders, proving he is a proactive reader of the game rather than a reactive tackler. The three closest DNA matches to Mauricio Lemos:

• Alessandro Bastoni(80% match) — Bastoni has quietly become the most dangerous defender in Serie A that no one talks about in those terms—a left-sided centre-back who functions, in practice, as a deep-lying playmaker wearing the wrong shirt number. His passing volume sits in the top 5% of defenders in the league, and his passes into the final third rank similarly elite, meaning Inter's attacking phases are frequently being *authored* from the back.
• Federico Dimarco(80% match) — Dimarco is the rare left-sided defender who genuinely terrifies opponents in the final third—a set-piece specialist and overlap threat wrapped inside a defensive role. His numbers at Inter tell a fascinating story: key passes, goals, and assists all rank in Serie A's top 5% among defenders, a combination virtually no other defender in the league can claim.
• Alessandro Buongiorno(80% match) — Buongiorno has quietly become one of Serie A's most complete defensive operators — a centre-back who wins the ball without fanfare and moves it with purpose. His interception numbers place him in the top 10% of defenders in the league, which tells you something important: this isn't a defender who simply reacts, he anticipates.

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