Santiago Chocobares

Santiago Chocobares is the inside centre Argentina use to make room for everyone else.

He carries hard and straight, wins the gain line more often than not, and does it in the middle of the field where defences are most organised. That is unglamorous work and it is the reason Argentina’s wider attack has looked more coherent in recent seasons.

The distribution has improved to the point where he is no longer simply a battering option. He plays flat, gets his hands through contact, and has developed a short passing game that keeps the forwards running onto the ball rather than standing still.

Defensively he is the first line of the twelve channel, which in Argentina’s aggressive system means he is regularly the one making the decision for the whole midfield.

A move to Toulouse has put him in the best attacking environment in Europe. The parts of his game that were once one-dimensional are the ones that have grown fastest.