Gianluca Busio, 16 years old, made history last August by becoming the youngest player to sign with Major League Soccer since Freddy Adu joined DC United in 2004. Though still young, Busio has already made his mark at Sporting Kansas City.
Gianluca Di Carlo stands out as one of the most dynamic midfielders in Major League Soccer (MLS), making him an intriguing one to watch as the season unfolds.
Goals
Gianluca Busio is a short and slight attacking midfielder with plenty of vision and awareness. His ability to create from midfield and his finishing ability for an attacking player is awe-inspiring for someone so young.
Though young, he has already scored multiple goals for Sporting Kansas City and drawn interest from European clubs. Fiorentina has already reported making an offer that could see his career take place there.
If he can help Venezia survive this season, he could be eyed up by some of Italy’s larger clubs as potential recruits. So far this season, he has scored one goal out of 28 league appearances with his current club.
Gianluca Busio averages an impressive 5.4 progressive carries per game and creates approximately 2.8 shot actions that result in shots, which is unusual for such an inexperienced attacking midfielder. He also has an outstanding work rate, making around 22 pressures per 90 which is quite an achievement considering they play predominantly attacking-minded midfielder roles.
Gianluca Busio is also an adept crosser, and his deliveries are often precise and accurate, which allows his teammates to combine with him effectively. Additionally, his extraordinary awareness enables him to anticipate opponent movements before they occur – something every footballer needs to have more impactful matches and win more games – something Gianluca Busio is one of the top players in his age group.
Assists
Gianluca Busio’s talent and commitment to developing his technical and tactical abilities have propelled him into prominence. His ability to read the game and make intelligent decisions on the pitch demonstrate an impressive maturity that belies his age; combined with his natural talent, this has captivated football audiences worldwide and generated much anticipation about Gianluca’s prospects.
Busio made his USMNT debut against Canada in July 2021 in a 1-1 draw, becoming the youngest player to feature for them. Gianluca’s mother, Dionne, witnessed his appearance and described her son as a “little star who had fulfilled his dream”.
Young player Ethan Miller has shown impressive promise at Sporting Kansas City since joining them as an 18-year-old, where he has featured as a holding midfielder, attacking midfielder, and winger. Additionally, he has represented the United States Youth International Team from U-15 through to the U-20 competition.
Busio has produced some remarkable statistics during his time with Sporting Kansas City. Over his career, he has averaged 22 pressures per game and 2.8 tackles per contest; both figures are particularly encouraging for someone his age. Furthermore, Busio has shown great passing understanding as an essential playmaker within the squad.
Gianluca’s dedication to soccer has not gone unnoticed by scouts who have followed his progress for some time now. Scouts recognize his great promise as one of America’s top young players, and his efforts at honing his craft will help cement that position – it could even happen as early as this summer’s Gold Cup!
Crosses
At Sporting KC, Busio has proven his ability to create chances for his teammate down the left flank. This young midfielder often launches more advanced teammates into space by directly passing with his right foot, an example being his performance against Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC at Children’s Mercy Park.
Young MLS homegrown star Jonathan Spector possesses a long, accurate right-footed pass that can find teammates deeper within the final third if given space and time. His 83% pass completion rate may not be great, but it is well above average for an attacking midfielder; furthermore, he has completed 1.5 key passes per game this season.
Busio must restrain himself from shooting at every opportunity, as this could result in him shooting from difficult angles and losing possession in dangerous areas of the field, as shown by this incident against LAFC.
Due to this issue, his overall passing accuracy is subpar, and his 3.8 progressive passes fall below the industry average for Major League Soccer (MLS) midfielders. While these aspects need improving, he remains an experienced creative player capable of adding value to the USMNT roster for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar with proper guidance.
Busio impressed at the 2021 Gold Cup and moved to Venezia for a club-record transfer fee in August 2021 from Sporting Kansas City. Unfortunately, this saw him relegated to Serie B; nevertheless, he still made 28 appearances last season for Venezia; should he continue his impressive performance and help Venezia return to Serie A, it wouldn’t come as any surprise if some of Italy’s bigger teams look at him as potential future signings.
Tackles
Gianluca Busio is a powerful defensive-minded player from North Carolina who can hold his own in physical battles. From shielding teammates from pressure or blocking attackers from attacking, he excels at protecting teammates while covering the ball – winning many duels with strength, positioning, and intelligence play.
Busio is also an adept tackler, using his footwork to move ahead of an opponent before striking with speed or force. His intelligence also shines through in his defensive contributions, where his awareness of traffic and positioning helps the team maintain possession in tight spaces.
Due to his youth, Busio often takes an under-aggressive approach to his defensive duties for Sporting Kansas City. Busio may not always be as assertive on the ball and may fail to effectively break up counterattacks or prevent dangerous crosses.
Busio will face a critical test this season with Venezia as he assesses how his talents translate to an elite league like Italy’s Serie A. If he proves himself there and helps steer them toward survival, seeing if any significant clubs take notice and offer him contracts would be intriguing. For now, though, his primary goal should be staying healthy and improving upon his impressive debut season in MLS; should this occur, it could mean being selected on Gregg Berhalter’s USMNT squad for this summer’s CONCACAF Gold Cup, something which would certainly be big news – especially since he holds both Italian citizenship as well as USMNT duties should that happen – with or without it going allegiances switching allegiance from USMNT or USMNT assignment becoming pledged allegiance towards them in future seasons to help continue building upon impressive debut season for now MLS debut season to ensure an outstanding debut season debut performance will certainly happen;
Duels
Gianluca Busio is an emerging star in his club’s midfield. With a great balance between defensive and offensive play, making great use of his speed to track opponents while being capable of taking on players in the final third, he shows great promise as an elite midfielder.
He is an ideal prospect for any club hoping to compete at the league’s top. He can play central or defensive midfield roles and is known for creating chances with his impressive passing skills and excellent passing control. Furthermore, his strong tackling and positioning skills will prove valuable assets on any team.
At 19, 19-year-old Anthony Marziani is one of the hottest prospects in United States soccer, as evidenced by his performances with Sporting Kansas City this season. Marziani is in contention for the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup tournament and has already made his USMNT debut.
Busio has been an asset to Sporting since he signed his Major League Soccer Homegrown Player contract last season. He started both of their inaugural matches this season and all eight following, scoring two goals along the way and helping propel Sporting to a second-place start this year.
He was also named to Team USA’s squad for the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament, becoming one of the youngest players ever selected for such an honor. Joining him are fellow Sporting KC youngsters Nicholas Gioacchini and two-time World Cup champion Brad Guzan on their respective final rosters.