Oumar Solet is proving to be one of the most interesting and strongest defenders in Serie A. Arriving at Udinese after being released by Red Bull Salzburg, the French center back immediately showed his quality, standing out for his ability to anticipate and cover large portions of the field without committing unnecessary fouls. In nine games he collected only six fouls, an astonishing figure for a defender of his size, 1.92 meters for 81 kg turning out MVP of the competition played on three occasions.
His physical solidity, as Il Foglio colleagues recall, had already emerged in the Champions League, when two seasons ago he put Olivier Giroud in trouble in a hand-to-hand duel. But Solet is not only physical strength: in his outings in Udinese jersey he has shown great ball skills in running the ball, setting up the action and important tears coming to play the ball to the heart of the opponent’s area.
It was precisely his European performances that had attracted the interest of several clubs, but Salzburg demanded 25 million euros for his club card. A knee problem the following season led the club to try to sell him, a choice Solet did not like, preferring to terminate his contract and start from scratch.
And here Udinese, with its managers, was very good at fitting in and convincing the player that starting again in bianconero would be the right choice. In Udine he found the right environment to relaunch himself. From September to January, he trained without being able to play, waiting for his registration. In January he finally made his debut and has not left the field since, showing that he has adapted quickly to Italian soccer. He himself said that he can easily adapt to any situation, although with referees he had to take measures.
The most difficult moment of his career came on January 20, 2025, during Como-Udinese. After an initial yellow card in the 59th minute, Solet became nervous and received another caution after only four minutes, leaving his team outnumbered. Udinese then lost 4-1 and Solet experienced what he called the “biggest disgrace” of his career.
His growth as a defender began almost by accident: initially a midfielder, he was brought back to Stade Lavallois for a defensive emergency and has not changed roles since. Today, Solet is a point of reference for Udinese, a team that reflects his calm and pragmatic character. With his arrival, the solidity of the Udinese department has increased exponentially. Runjaic’s team has thus strung together a series of really important consecutive useful results that propel it into the race for a Conference League spot after starting out with the goal of saving itself more quietly than in the previous year.
All it took was a handful of truly top-notch performances for Solet for the market sirens to start echoing again. In Italy the big French lad has attracted the interests of Inter, Atalanta and Napoli, in Germany Bayer Leverkusen likes him, while several clubs have shown interest in the Premier League. Udinese would not like to sell him next summer, confirming him for one more season in the Juventus shirt, but it is known that the ways of the market are endless. The price tag? It starts at a minimum of 25 million euros and goes up. Yet another swanky transaction brought to fruition by the Bianconeri management.
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