Denis Zakaria: Gladbach and Switzerland Defensive Midfielder
Denis Zakaria is a Swiss professional footballer who plays for German club Borussia Mönchengladbach (commonly called as Gladbach) and the Switzerland national team as a defensive midfielder. He is of Congolese origin. He made his professional debut for BSC Young Boys in a Swiss Super League match against FC Zurich after coming off the bench. Zakaria played 33 times for the Bern based club in the 2015-16 season including 27 in the league. In the 2016-17 season, he made 34 appearances in all competitions. In total, Zakaria made 67 appearances for BSC Young Boys scoring 2 goals and providing 4 assists.
Ahead of the 2017-18 season, BSC Young Boys sold Zakaria to Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach for a fee of €12 million. Zakaria played 33 games for Die Borussen in the 2017-18 season where he scored 2 goals and gave 3 assists. Next season, he appeared 32 times in the Bundesliga and the DFB Pokal and had 5 goal involvements (4 goals and 1 assist). In the 2019-20 season, Zakaria featured 31 times in all competitions scoring and assisting 2 goals each.
Zakaria has been capped 28 times for Switzerland national team and has scored and assisted 3 times each so far. He was included in the Euro 2016 and the FIFA World Cup 2018 squads.
Under coach Marco Rose, Gladbach started the 2019-20 Bundesliga season well topping the table after 11 matches collecting 25 points (Yes, Bayern eventually won the league but before the appointment of Hansi Flick, they were struggling). Zakaria became a key component for Rose’s side. He can play as the lone defensive midfielder or in a midfield double pivot. If necessary, Zakaria can also play in a back three as the central defender. He is crucial for the team when they build up attacks from the back which they do frequently. On average, defensively, he made 5.88 interceptions and 10 recoveries per game. These numbers show his aggressive approach when Gladbach don’t have possession. He has tremendous stamina, speed and work rate. Zakaria positions himself between the ball and the opponent in a wise manner to win possession back for his team. Most footballers have one or two of the following three physical qualities: Speed, Strength and Stamina. However, Zakaria is a rare player who has all of the above three qualities. He uses his speed to get on one-on-one situations and has enough stamina and strength to come out on top of an attacker. When Gladbach are in possession, Zakaria helps dictate matches with short passes. He can organize attacks from deep and provides a safe option for a back pass. He can also find spaces for himself higher up the pitch. His dribbling is good enough thanks to his great speed and a decent technique.
Zakaria has already established himself amongst the top 5 defensive midfielders in the Bundesliga. One more excellent season at Die Borussen will see him being linked to bigger clubs in Europe. If he does go to a bigger club, Zakaria will be an excellent addition to their midfield.
