Federico Chiesa had ‘Ballon d’Or potential’ but faces big Liverpool question – Liverpool FC

Two months into his Liverpool career, Federico Chiesa has yet to properly take off at Anfield but has shown promise in his 78 minutes so far.

As Liverpool’s only signing this summer, the Italian attacker was the subject of supporters’ excitement when he made his £12.5 million move from Juventus.

Arne Slot knew, though, that this wouldn’t be a player who could come in and instantly make an impact on the team.

He has made three appearances including one start so far for Liverpool, and while showing promise in moments, he is clearly not yet at the level promised earlier in his career before his 2022 ACL injury.

To learn more about Chiesa and why he is hoping Liverpool can provide a fresh start, This Is Anfield spoke to Italian football journalist Nima Tavallaey (@NimaTavRood).

What made Federico Chiesa so special as a youngster?

This ability of combining technique, speed, pace and his ability to be very resolute in finishes, you know.

He was a great finisher and he would score a lot of good goals, a lot of difficult goals with shots from just outside the box – and he would go past his man almost all the time.

He was like a heat-seeking missile when he buried his head down and went on a run. He’s lost that now.

He was one of my favourite players of this generation of Italian players.

When Federico Chiesa broke through to the stage at Fiorentina, he was, in my opinion, the only Italian attacking football player that had the raw talent, I felt at the time, to one day possibly be in discussions of a Ballon d’Or.

Where is his best position?

Having lost some of his pace, I think Massimiliano Allegri (manager at Juventus) was trying to make the best out of the situation by turning him into a striker in the two-man attack.

Chiesa hated that by all accounts so now it’s the wide area, and hopefully maybe Liverpool can work some miracle out and get him back to his best.

He wants to play a wide role and that’s where he’s going to try to play whether it’s on the right or the left, he can kind of play on both.

I don’t think he can be a starter for Liverpool in the sense that he can replace Mo Salah without dropping in quality.

The ACL problem…

They say that it takes two years to fully recover from an ACL. Well, we’re pushing almost two and a half, three now.

The issue is he used to be able to combine the technique and speed to go past his opponents. He can’t do that anymore, they catch up to him too easily and it frustrates him – you can see that visibly on the pitch.

Is £12.5 million a good deal for Liverpool?

I think it’s a good deal for Liverpool and Juventus. I don’t think it sets Liverpool back too much and he’s not been brought in to be a starter.

It’s obvious he’s been brought in to be a rotation player. I think he can do something as a rotation player absolutely.

From Liverpool’s perspective, I get it. They get a player who’s won a lot, who’s been at big clubs, can do decently as a rotation player, but I don’t think he will ever become the player he once was unfortunately.

Thanks again to Nima Tavallaey for sharing insight on Chiesa. You can follow Nima on X @NimaTavRood