How Liverpool can line up with Federico Chiesa ahead of potential transfer deadline scramble

Whatever happens in the next few days, Richard Hughes’ first transfer window as sporting director at Liverpool will certainly have been memorable. At the moment, it looks destined to be remembered for what didn’t happen, rather than what did.

But, wait. There is still time for the Reds to become the final club in the Premier League to complete a signing this summer. The latest name on the rumor wire is Federico Chiesa, Juventus’ 26-year-old attacker.

In one sense, this isn’t ‘news’ as such. Chiesa has reportedly been of interest to Liverpool for at least five years. But that was the Jurgen Klopp era and we are now in the age of Arne Slot . If the Reds were to sign the Italian, how might he be deployed?

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Arguably the greatest selling point for Chiesa is his flexibility and the options which he provides to a head coach. His Transfermarkt profile shows that he has experience in seven different positions, with at least 72 appearances on both wings and also through the middle as either a center-forward or second striker.

Chiesa’s FBRef scouting reports make the same point, and his data for the 2021/22 Champions League emphasizes it perfectly with regards to Liverpool. The player with whom he was most statistically similar in that edition of Europe’s top club competition was Luis Díaz .

Sadio Mané and Mohamed Salah were also in his top 10, as were Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Vinicius Junior if you need further convincing of his ability. But more important is that Chiesa was matching with players who appeared in all three forward line positions for Liverpool that season.

In terms of where he might perform best for Slot, a lot will depend on what the Liverpool boss would see as his primary function. For instance, Chiesa’s best campaign for dribbling was 2018/19, a season in which he topped the Serie A standings for carries into the penalty area and was also in the top five for both progressive carries and successful take-ons. He made 28 of his 38 starts on the right that year, suggesting he could sub in for Salah when the Egyptian needs a breather.

But Chiesa began more of his games on the left two years later, going on to record his best average for expected assists per 90 minutes from that position. If not quite so incisive, he still made 50 carries into opposition boxes, the fifth most in the Italian top flight, too. With Salah still looking like a guaranteed starter, it may be Diaz who would be most at risk from Chiesa’s arrival.

Liverpool's potential line-up with Chiesa: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konaté, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Salah, Szoboszlai, Chiesa; Jota.