Johan Manzambi: Freiburg's latest gem

A common criticism about the Bundesliga is that because of how dominant Bayern Munich have been, not much else about the league truly matters. On some level, it’s understandable. Domestic dynasties like Bayern or Paris Saint-Germain in France can warp domestic football with how much they dwarf the rest of the competition.

However, there are still fun stories to be found. Given their relative lack of resources, Union Berlin’s three-year stretch from 2021-23, finishing 7th, 5th, and 4th, was an amazing accomplishment. Through smart recruitment, and the impressive coaching of Sebastian Hoeneß, Stuttgart have made themselves into top-four contenders over the past three seasons. 

Freiburg should certainly be included in that group of overachievers. Christian Streich’s celebrated 12-year coaching tenure from 2012-24 saw them qualify for the Europa League four times. During that run, several notable talents played for the Black Forest side, including Maximilian Philipp, Ritsu Doan, and Nico Schlotterbeck. Under Julian Schuster, the club has continued to perform solidly and has a chance to qualify for Europe once again. 

Part of the rise of Freiburg has involved finding gems from the market or coming through their academy. In Johan Manzambi, they might’ve unearthed their next diamond. After getting reps with Freiburg II a couple of years ago, he broke through to the first team at the tail end of last season. 2025-26 has been a breakout campaign for him, becoming a permanent fixture in the starting XI and is on pace to play over 2000 league minutes in his age-19 season.

What makes Manzambi an interesting prospect is he tries to do a lot of different things on the pitch, so there’s the upside of a do-it-all midfielder with him (however realistic that may be). As of now, you’d lean towards calling him a box-to-box CM. At his best, he’s certainly an above-average athlete who can display a combination of shiftiness and change of pace that you don’t often see from a player of his archetype. 

Both of those traits come into play with Manzambi’s dribbling and progressive carrying. The numbers are eye-popping. According to Statsbomb, he’s 1st in the Bundesliga among midfielders with 1200 minutes played for dribble and carry on-ball value per 90 and 7th in total carries. From Scout Lab, no midfielder in the league has more progressive carries on a per-90 basis with at least 900 minutes played. In addition, he’s second for shot-ending carries and fourth in field gained by carries. Anyway you slice it, he’s been one of the most impactful solo progressors of the ball in Germany this season.

In tight spaces, Manzambi already has the savvy to maneuver away from pressure. This is prominent in the middle third, as he’s not relied on heavily within Freiburg’s buildup phase. He’s got different tricks in these situations, and when you combine that with having enough functional strength to absorb contact, it makes him a handful to contain. Once he’s able to face forward, there’s a smoothness to how he eats up yards as a carrier, at times looking like he is gliding. The way he dribbles can occasionally resemble more of a winger with how he works the touchline and the change of pace he utilizes. This has helped him generate shooting opportunities for himself in ways you don’t see from other midfielders.

A good example of this is the near-goal scored in the first half against FC Utrecht back in October:

The hope for prodigious ball-carriers is that they don’t just provide gravity with how they can move the ball into open space themselves, but that they’re also able to find teammates in pockets of space or in behind the opposition defense. The numbers would indicate that Manzambi passes this test, at least higher up the pitch. Via Statsbomb, he’s 13th among Bundesliga midfielders for open play key passes, open play expected goals assisted per 90, and on-ball value from passes. According to Scout Lab, he’s tied for 8th in expected threat created via passes. 

There are things to like with Manzambi as a passer. Because of the consistency of his first touch and how shifty he is generally, it allows him to map the pitch. His dribbling from wide also allows him to attack the left side of the box to try and generate chances like a winger would. A pleasant surprise has been his crossing in the final third, using minimal backlift to find teammates in the penalty area. According to Scout Lab, he’s 6th in completed open-play crosses among Bundesliga midfielders. Although he’ll try to hunt for aerial opportunities in earlier phases, the weighting on those aerial attempts worsen the further back he is. He could stand to be more aggressive at finding teammates between the lines, along with trying to help link up play. Both of those traits will be key in defining how much value he can provide from buildup sequences.

What Manzambi can do with the ball is promising, particularly in the opposition half. There’s also optimism with how he operates without the ball, at least going forward. He’s active at looking for third-man runs, and can play off of forwards who have their back to goal. There’ll also be instances of him randomly jumping into the front line. What is consistent is he’ll try to flood the penalty box as a secondary runner to take advantage of space created by others, which is worthwhile for a midfielder. Given how young he is, generating over 2 shots per 90, with an xG/shot of 0.07, is an encouraging signal.

In comparison, Manzambi is arguably more of a mixed bag out of possession. His quickness off the mark helps him create high turnovers from misplaced first touches by the opposition from the first phase of play. Where the motor can run a bit hot or cold is with potential counterpressing scenarios, or just 50-50 balls in general. Partly because he’s so young, he is prone to going to ground for nervy sliding tackles and not coming out the winner in those battles. On the bright side, he’s shown awareness for tracking short off-ball movements during combination plays within 2v2s or 3v3s towards the flank in the middle third. 

There’s no denying the electric talent Manzambi possesses. Compared to most midfielders in Germany and Europe in general, he is a dynamic athlete, particularly on the ball. His ability to drive play is impressive, and it’s combined with burgeoning final third creation. Questions do arise with what he can provide while possession is in his own half. Off the ball, he could become a formidable box crasher over time. His defensive work is arguably closer to neutral than an outright positive, which could limit his ceiling to a certain extent.

Unsurprisingly, big clubs have seemingly taken notice of Manzambi’s rise. There’ve been loose transfer links involving him and the big Premier League clubs, Bayern, and PSG. The combination of his impressive performances and a contract that doesn’t expire until 2030 means it would take a significant amount to acquire him. How he’d fit in a bigger club would be interesting. It’s not hard to imagine him continuing to operate as part of a double pivot alongside a midfield partner who takes up more of the early buildup responsibilities. However, perhaps he becomes a high-end creator and shooter so that the best way to utilize his talents is within a midfield three, floating between the left halfspace and wing.

In a season where several Bundesliga prospects have emerged onto the scene, Manzambi certainly holds his own within that group. The kind of wiggle he’s shown on the ball, alongside intriguing playmaking and sufficient off-ball work, makes him the kind of midfielder who could reasonably scale up to bigger clubs. How he develops out of possession and in early phases of play will be key markers for how good he can become.

In Johan Manzambi, Freiburg have a potential star in their hands, and he could be in high demand this summer.