Liverpool completed the signing of Federico Chiesa yesterday. The player's own excitement at the move has been infectious, filling fans with enthusiasm, but there have nonetheless been one or two doubts expressed about his injury record — which Arne Slot has moved to address already .
Chiesa arrives at Liverpool without any specific injury issues, although he will need to build up his fitness, having only played a peripheral role in Juventus' preseason after returning from the Euros. Slot revealed that the Italian is unlikely to make the squad against Manchester United , but refused to rule it out.
The 26-year-old takes part in team training for the first time today ahead of the trip to Old Trafford. That will see him meeting up with the likes of Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz , ahead of what looks like a daunting battle for minutes.
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Chiesa himself expressed a quiet confidence in his own abilities , as well as a recognition that competition will be fierce. And for Slot, more options can only be a good thing, especially in light of the winger's injury record.
"It wouldn’t be the first time that English media overexaggerate!" Slot joked, when asked if fitness concerns had been blown out of proportion. "It's true he had an ACL issue but the rest he didn't have big injuries, just minor like other players maybe.
"I trust my performance staff. He is not the only winger we have, we have others, so if he is not available at certain moments we have others and there are enough players to choose."
Slot's assessment seems to tally with the facts. Chiesa has never missed more than six games at once since the ACL rupture kept him out for 45 matches, even if the sheer number of minor complaints will be a slight concern to Liverpool.
And it's true that Chiesa will initially arrive some way down the pecking order. We've barely even seen Darwin Nunez this season, and Cody Gakpo has been a peripheral figure too, so Liverpool's options are not looking thin on the ground.
Even so, Liverpool will hope that Slot is right about his performance staff. Chiesa has the potential to be a real bargain, but even as a depth option, consistent fitness will be important.
Liverpool.com says: It was a nice and measured response from Slot. He can't dismiss the injury concerns entirely, but perhaps the Liverpool fanbase has been guilty of overreacting a little, having been burned by Thiago not long ago.
If Chiesa was arriving with a marquee price tag and wage commitment to match, there would be some more legitimate worries. But his post-ACL injury luck has been decent enough to make it well worth Liverpool rolling the dice.
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