Name: Oliver Sorg
Club: SC Freiburg
Nationality: German
Position: Full back
Who is he?
After coming through the youth academy of Bundesliga side SC Freiburg alongside young stars such as Matthias Ginter and Jonathan Schmid, Sorg made his Bundesliga debut in January 2012, having captained the club’s reserve team in the lower divisions.
Quickly establishing himself in the first team, he went on to make 17 appearances that season, playing a full 90 minutes in every available match. Half of his appearances were at right back, while he was on the left towards the end of the season.
Achievements
He has remained a regular for Freiburg in 2012/13, making 32 Bundesliga appearances in a team that was surprisingly in the hunt for Champions League places.
Although Sorg has yet to make an impression at senior national team level, he has U21 caps and has been called up to the squad for the European Championships this summer. Oddly he has never played for the national team in a younger age group.
Attributes
Composed on the ball and an excellent dribbler, the 22-year-old wing back is also solid defensively, especially when it comes to his tackling and awareness.
He ranks 17th in the Bundesliga for tackles per game, while he has the highest interception rate of any player in the Bundesliga this season!
His versatility is also a plus point as he can play on the right or left of the back four, aided by the fact that he is genuinely two-footed. However he has predominantly featured on the left this season.
The one disappointing aspect of his play is his end product, having produced one assist this season, while he only completed one in five attempted crosses in 2012/13.
Potential
Sorg is seen as an excellent prospect and a future Germany international, alongside Sebastian Jung.
However in the short-term much will depend on how he copes at the European Championships.
Playing in the Europa League next season will prove to be good for his development, provided he remains at Freiburg which is likely for now.
