Marcos Maitan: a centre back project

 

If you get a close-up of Marcos Maitan's face, you'll see youthful features, a big smile and, thanks to that, visible braces. On the surface, you'll see a noble and well-behaved young man.

That might be true in his everyday life, but on the pitch, these characteristics couldn't be further from the truth. His ferocity, physical presence and remarkable height create a paradoxical contrast with his facial features.

At 17, Marcos Maitan possesses four of the five characteristics of a center-back: stopper, ball control skills, ability to cover open space and aerial dominance. We will now detail each of these qualities present in his playing style.

Marcos Maitan as a stopper

The stopper usually finds advantages through his physical dominance and therefore relies on the firmness and strength of his tackles. While Marcos Maitan is a defender who prefers to temporize rather than rush into a challenge, he has a good percentage when he goes into a physical duel.

In this respect, it's expected that a player with his physique would be far superior to his contemporaries in tournaments where he competes with players between 15 and 16 years old. Given this superiority, it's easy to be clumsy and, consequently, commit fouls. However, the defender doesn't usually exhibit this common mistake.

Before the start of the South American U-17 Championship, Oswaldo Vizcarrondo, the team's head coach, spoke in the podcast the Vinotinto TV about the characteristics he wanted in his team and one of those mentioned was "measured aggression" when recovering the ball.

The native of El Tigre fulfilled his role in this aspect. He averaged one foul per game and received only one yellow card in the six matches played in the tournament. He also had the third-best average in duels won (8.7 per game) and was the most outstanding player in this category with a 53% success rate.

His use of tackling was one of his greatest strengths in winning 1v1 situations. Once he gained possession, it was difficult for opponents to dispossess him thanks to his size and reach, which he used to protect the ball. This was one of his main ways of averaging 9.5 recoveries per game.

The sequence shows Maitan being marked by the Ecuadorian striker, who manages to pass to the nearby midfielder. They then look to attack behind the defender, who outpaces his opponent, protects the ball and passes it to initiate the defensive-to-offensive transition.

Marcos Maitan with the ball

In modern football, players are increasingly expected to be able to fulfill different roles and, in short, be more well-rounded. This includes the fact that center-backs must now be a fundamental part of building the game from the back.

Oswaldo Vizcarrondo's U-17 team had a well-defined identity. They didn't shy away from direct play, but they sought to avoid it as much as possible, opting for clean passes and creating partnerships that would advance the ball.

Within that identity, Marcos Maitan was the key player in the back line. He was the second Venezuelan player with the most completed passes (25.5 per game) and the second-best accuracy rate (83%).

His passes are mostly short, to the nearest full-back or midfielder. However, he has the technical ability and the flair to drop deep and make runs that break lines and reach the midfield.

Maitan breaks free with a dribble until he reaches the right outside lane of zone 2. He attracts three players, escapes with a cut inside and plays a soft touch with the nearby midfielder to create a clear attacking opportunity.

Similarly, while he doesn't frequently play through balls, his range isn't limited to short passes, as he has a high success rate (53%) when delivering long balls. He generally plays these long balls to the far wing on the opposite flank.

Marcos Maitan in open field

The bold and captivating style of play implemented by Oswaldo Vizcarrondo meant that the Venezuelan national team spent much of the match in the opposition's half, creating numerous spaces in their own final third and increasing their vulnerability to counter-attacks.

It was in this context that Marcos Maitan emerged as a key player, providing a crucial counter-attack strategy and a highly effective solution to the opposition's transitions between defense and attack.

His quick reflexes allowed him to react effectively to fast breaks, intercepting passes behind him to retain possession, pass back to the goalkeeper or play forward to the nearest available pass.

In this role, tactical awareness and his understanding with his regular partner, Eider Barrios, were fundamental. If he dropped back to intercept or contest a duel, the Caracas FC defender would stay back to provide cover as the last man and vice versa.

However, his response against dribblers and lighter players was perhaps one of his most impressive strengths. With his high center of gravity, you can expect him to struggle against sudden changes of pace from agile players. But that wasn't the case.

He possesses excellent tactical awareness and understanding, allowing him to position himself effectively in such situations. He isn't particularly fast. However, if an attacker manages to gain an advantage through speed, the Monagas native is able to compensate using his long stride to close down the angle and block the respective pass or cross.

Marcos Maitan delays the attacker and reacts quickly to the cut to the outside to intercept the cross.

Marcos Maitan in the aerial game

Not since Jhon Chancellor (1.98 meters) has a footballer of such height been seen in Venezuela's youth categories. Not even Nahuel Ferraresi (1.88 meters), Williams Velásquez (1.88 meters), or Wilker Ángel (1.90 meters) as U-20 players matched his height.

Marcos Maitan's stature is an anomaly; at just 17 years old, he already measures 1.95 meters. If he were playing with his contemporaries on the Venezuelan national basketball team (U-17), he would be the third tallest player on the roster (behind Kevin Gutiérrez and Ezequiel Pérez, both at 1.97 meters) and would likely be playing the center or power forward position.

Therefore, in a youth category, he represented a guarantee in the high-flying game. With a 61% success rate, he won 3.7 aerial duels per game. He was also the third best clearancer in the entire South American Championship, completing 4.5 clearances per macth.

Even so, he doesn't only excel at headers, because he has great reading ability and coordination to orient his body according to the delivery, correctly position the inside edge of his foot and thus, with his lower body, make strong, high and lateral clearances.

Brazil finds the back of the Venezuelan left-back, so Maitan reacts quickly to position himself, cut off the center line to the striker and finally deflect the ball to a corner kick.

In attack, he's the go-to man for set pieces. Takers often look to him for a first-time shot, to win headers and create chances by winning second balls.

Marcos Maitan wins a corner kick to pass the ball to the heart of the area and find a finisher who wins the second ball.

At the same time, if the team desperately needs a draw or a win in the final minutes, it's natural to see him move into the box to occupy that position and support the center forward.

That said, his statistics are remarkable: he scored a goal against Chile in the South American Championship third-place match and netted two more during the team's friendly tour, which included the AIFIT Canteras de América Tournament in Argentina and the Mitad del Mundo Tournament in Ecuador.

Marcos Maitan is the best prospect for a central defender in Venezuela's youth system. He's an exceptionally complete defender with a remarkable physique, advanced tactical awareness for his age and technique that belies his lanky frame.

Personally, I haven't seen a defender with such exceptional qualities at such a young age since Christian Makoun who captained the U-17 team in 2017. According to international and elite standards, Maitan is ahead of the curve, but the versatility of the former Zamora player is an advantage that makes him extremely attractive in the transfer market.

The Monagas Sport Club player is a pure center-back who starts from the back line and primarily operates in the central areas as a first center-back and sometimes as a second.

However, in the match against Chile in the South American Championship, Oswaldo Vizcarrondo implemented a tactical variation, deploying a three-man backline in attack. In this formation, Marcos Maitan played as a right-sided center-back alongside Eider Barrios and Luigi Pagano.

He clearly doesn't need versatility to continue his upward trajectory. Players like Virgil Van Dijk and Gerard Piqué didn't. Similarly, his characteristics and how well-rounded he is are simply detailed, because he possesses four of the five types and qualities a central defender can and must offer.

To date, Marcos Maitan has played four professional matches with Monagas Sport Club, accumulating a total of 290 minutes in the top tier of Venezuelan football.

He is the defensive leader of the Venezuelan U-17 national team, so his leadership and skills will be key to competing and succeeding in the Qatar World Cup. At his current rate, he could represent the same role in the next U-20 cycle, which will take place in 2025 and where he will also be coached by Oswaldo Vizcarrondo.