Why do Liverpool want Federico Chiesa – and would he be a good fit?

It was one of the summer’s more surprising transfer tales.

The news that Liverpool are exploring a possible deal for Juventus and Italy attacker Federico Chiesa, who is available for around €15million (£12.7m; $16.7m) due to the 26-year-old only having a year left on his contract, seemed to come out of nowhere.

Yet there is logic to Liverpool’s interest. Here, we explain why and how Chiesa could fit in at Anfield.

Why do Liverpool want cover in this position?

Liverpool have been considering bringing in another wide forward all summer. They already have five very good attacking options in Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota, Luis Diaz, Cody Gakpo and Darwin Nunez. Chiesa, who favours the right side of the pitch, would add experienced depth behind Salah with new head coach Arne Slot so far using Jota and Nunez as the central striker and Diaz and Gakpo on the left.

Salah’s excellence and durability mean Liverpool have not needed a specific backup for the right-winger role, with left-winger and the No 9 as the regular rotation spots under previous manager Jurgen Klopp. This could suggest that, with Salah now 32 years old, Liverpool want to reinforce their forward line to rotate the Egypt international more often to keep him as fresh as possible.

What does Slot want from a wide forward?

Wingers are key in Slot’s system. He likes them to be unpredictable and strong in their one-on-one duels, capable of carrying and progressing the ball while linking up with team-mates.

He is happy for them to drift inside, allowing the side’s full-backs to overlap, but low crosses from the byline are also a feature in his system. Chiesa may have endured a difficult season in 2023-24, but he is a versatile forward who would appear to fit that profile.

Chiesa’s injury history is also a slight concern. He suffered an ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) tear in his knee during 2021-22, which significantly set him back, but he only missed six games for Juventus last season due to injury. Availability has become an increasingly important attribute at Anfield, with Liverpool keen to avoid repeats of other signings who have been dogged by fitness problems.

However, Slot has had a very good injury prevention record at his previous clubs and the hope is that it can continue for Liverpool under the guidance of lead physical performance coach Ruben Peeters. Chiesa is unlikely to be a regular starter if he does sign, so theoretically could be managed accordingly.

Who else have Liverpool been linked with?

At the end of June, with Newcastle beset by profit and sustainability concerns, the opportunity emerged to sign Anthony Gordon.

A deal was in place for the 23-year-old Liverpudlian to move to Anfield for £75million, with defender Joe Gomez heading in the other direction for £45m, but a deal did not materialise.

Liverpool’s interest in Gordon, who predominantly plays on the left, increased speculation around the future of Diaz. Rumours linking the Colombian to Barcelona have swirled all summer, but no offer has been forthcoming for the 27-year-old, who has three years left on his contract. Slot sees Diaz as key to his plans.

What could this mean about Salah’s future?

Chiesa can operate on both flanks but predominantly plays on the right, so would face an almost impossible battle to usurp Salah this season.

Salah’s longer-term future, however, remains in doubt. The Egyptian is in the last year of his contract, turns 33 next summer and talks have yet to begin over a renewal. But he has started the season in fine form with two goals and an assist in his opening two games.

If Liverpool sign Chiesa, it would not be confirmation that this will be Salah’s final season on Merseyside. However, it may suggest succession planning is underway in case a contract extension is not agreed.

How Chiesa could help Liverpool

This deal may seem more like a market opportunity, given the reported fee and Chiesa’s age (he turns 27 in October) but there is an interesting tactical angle to it.

Over the course of his career, Chiesa has played all three positions in attack. Liverpool have plenty of cover on the left but could do with alternatives to Salah on the right, and the Italian would be a quality addition.

In their first two Premier League matches of this season, Liverpool have shown a marginal preference to attack down the left, recording 37 per cent of their attacking touches on that flank compared to 34 per cent on the right. It follows a trend from last season when 36 per cent of Liverpool’s attacking touches in the league came on their right, down from 39 per cent in 2022-23.

Part of the reason for this has been Salah’s transformation from a high-volume dribbler into an improved passer. His 2.7 take-on attempts and 35 per cent success rate in the 2023-24 Premier League were his lowest in a full season since he joined Liverpool in summer 2017. However, his 5.2 progressive passes per 90 number was his highest in that metric during his Anfield career.

Not much has changed in this regard so far under Slot, with Salah attempting just four take-ons but playing 11 progressive passes across those first two league outings against Ipswich Town and Brentford, as well as contributing goals and assists.

While Chiesa does not carry the same threat, he offers a ball-carrying profile closer to the Salah of old.

The Italian has phenomenal close control with both feet, which makes it tricky for defenders to mark him.

In the clip below, against Albania during Euro 2024 this summer, he feigns an inward run, cuts outside, and then goes inside once the nearest defender commits, before finding room between two opponents to cross with his left foot towards Lorenzo Pellegrini, who mistimes his acrobatic attempt at scoring.

Chiesa’s smarterscout pizza chart – which gives players’ games a series of ratings from zero to 99 based on either how often they perform a specific action or how effective they are at it — indicates the same. While Chiesa’s take-on success rate of 37 per cent could improve, his 2.4 carries into the penalty area per 90 was the highest among forwards in Italy’s Serie A last season.

It is worth noting that Chiesa spent most of last season playing down the middle for Juventus, alongside or instead of Dusan Vlahovic. This helped him enjoy the second-best club season of his career in terms of league goals, with nine, but he scored just three times in the Turin club’s final 16 league games.

As The Athletic’s James Horncastle wrote in April, Chiesa leaned into his tendency of dribbling out wide, which saw him operate further away from goal in an already tactically-ineffective Juventus attack. Even when operating down the middle, he was not a great shooter, with only 34 per cent accuracy on 3.0 shots per 90, and he also did not contribute much defensively.

Creatively, Chiesa still possesses a spark that makes him a threat. He managed just two league assists all season but recorded an expected assisted goals (xAG) figure of 6.2, indicating he created decent opportunities that were just not finished off. A major feature of his creativity was his dribbling, with Chiesa’s 0.6 shot-creating actions (SCAs) from take-ons per 90 ranking him in the top four per cent of attackers in Serie A.

At Liverpool, Chiesa would play in a different system and on the right, where Slot has a steep drop-off in quality behind Salah. Gakpo and Jota are much more comfortable coming in off the left, while 18-year-old Ben Doak is inexperienced, with his immediate future at the club in doubt as well.

Chiesa showed glimpses of his pre-ACL injury explosiveness and off-the-ball speed while playing on the right for Italy at Euro 2024, which will be encouraging for Liverpool.

One worry about Chiesa, aside from his injury record, has been his occasional inability to follow tactical instructions. There is also the unknown factor of how he would react to not being a regular starter. He is likely to be limited to a role running at tiring defenders in the latter parts of matches or playing against relatively weaker opposition in cup football, at least initially.

In that regard, he offers Slot a decent tactical alternative, as well as relief for Salah, who missed 10 matches last season through injury — one more than he was absent for in the previous three campaigns combined.

(Top photo: Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images)