Julia Grosso and Christine Sinclair – Canada. Photo credit: FIFA via Twitter.
Julia Grosso’s first ever international goal awarded Canada with gold at the Tokyo Olympics in a final penalty shootout against Sweden. Now headed to her second senior world cup, Grosso wants to contribute to adding another piece of silverware.
The 22 year old young Canadian named Serie A Midfielder of the Year this season, has been a cheat code for Juventus’s recent success and is expected to do the same for the Canucks. A left footed midfielder out of Vancouver, British Columbia, Grosso started playing soccer at the age of 4 for Vancouver’s Italian Canadian SF. The young integration into sports caught the eyes of scouts the moment the ball would be in her feet, cueing her to debut in the Canadian youth program at only 13. Ironically, it was current CANWNT head coach Bev Priestman in that role at the time. Success locally would translate into Julia winning gold at the CONCACAF in 2014, a trip to the U17 World cup in Jordan and a senior debut at the young age of 16.
There are very few names that sign their first professional contract straight out of college or high school, but Canadians are no stranger to that. Jessie Fleming, Deanne Rose, and Jayde Riviere earned WSL contracts right out of college. Jordyn Huitema was recruited to PSG after graduating high school, to which her international team best friend Grosso returned to her ancestral country Italy to join Juventus on an initial one-year contract in 2022 after wrapping up a successful few years at University of Texas at Austin.
Starting out at left back, Grosso has polished her arsenal of skills by evolving into a much more complete and creative midfielder. Confident in operating in the 6 or 8, either as a double pivot or single, Grosso holds valuable flexibility under Priestman that is hard to match. Given the current era shift in the Canadian midline as captain Christine Sinclair, Desiree Scott and Sophie Schmidt now making way for upcoming youngsters, Grosso is undeniably on that rise both internationally and at club level.
In her first season with Juventus, the team completed a domestic treble in the Serie A, the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italiana. Quickly proving to be integral in coach Joe Montemurro’s plans after a perfect start, Grosso put pen to paper for a contract extension. 2022/23 was set to be the Canadian’s first full professional where she bagged 34 appearances, 4 appearances and a crucial set of 8 assists across all competition, including starts in every UWCL match.
But, what are the qualities separating her from the rest of the bunch, which parts of her game have pushed experienced veterans on the bench? Though hard to narrow it down and isolate for only a few skills, her integration of magical ball control and exquisite vision is on frequent display at the highest level. Grosso hit the highest rate of completion of 91.8% with a healthy divide between passes into the final third, progressive passes, and pressure relieving short passes. Not only was the highest in the league but 4th highest in the UWCL despite Juventus narrowly missing to make into the Quarter final stages.
Often gone under the radar, is how much stability she provides when the team is under pressure, specifically her ability to “calm down” the midfield. Thankfully, numbers dont like and sitting in 92nd percentile of the serie A in Total Carrying Distance (total distance a player moved the ball while controlling with their feet) is exactly why she has become a consistent starter. Ranking high in meaningful passes and on the ball work is arguably some of the best qualities a midfielder of that position must have.
For Canada, it has been a challenge for Bev Preitsman to pin down a starting midfield given a troubled few camps due to a growing injury list. From the different setups the English women has executed, it is clear that deploying Julia Grosso pivoting behind creative playmaker Jessie Fleming along with the likes of Christine Sinclair would be a line producing golden football. Grosso must be given the freedom and space to carry the ball in positions other shy away from, and often when playing a double pivot too low, this is stripped away. Excelling at live ball touches and spotting pockets for sneaky assist, the on form Vancouver player will be everything for Canada midfield, both in scoring and defending.
At only 22 year of age, the world is at Grosso’s feet. Described as a fun jokester with too much energy and plenty of TikTok ideas to film off the field by her teammates, she can be a scary magician when wearing the red maple kit on the pitch. The reigning Olympic champions want to continue their reign by stepping on World Cup podium for the first time ever and Julia Grosso will be everything in this journey.
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