How Federico Chiesa will fit in at Liverpool: Future Salah replacement or immediate star?

Liverpool waited until the final days of the transfer window to furnish new manager Arne Slot with a first signing of the summer. But in Federico Chiesa, the Reds have potentially secured one of the bargains of the 2024-25 season.

The 51-cap Italy international has arrived from Juventus for a fee of just £10 million, with a potential further £2.5 million in add-ons. For such a relatively small sum, the 19-time champions of England have acquired a player who comes with serious pedigree.

Still just 26 years old, the former Fiorentina star has 235 top-flight appearances under his belt in his homeland, with 47 Serie A goals and 43 assists.

At international level, Chiesa was a key figure in the Azzurri’s Euro 2020 triumph, when he was voted on to the Team of the Tournament.

There is, of course, a reason why Liverpool have been able to sign him for such a minor fee, though. The Genoa-born winger has struggled with injuries and inconsistent form in recent seasons and Juventus were keen to offload his significant earnings from their wage bill.

But while little is known of his pay package at Anfield, the cut-price deal Liverpool have struck to secure his services means Chiesa represents a low-risk punt late in the transfer window. And there is plenty of reason to believe he will prove a hit on Merseyside.

Versatility

Judging by how Liverpool have gotten off to a flying start to life under Slot, there is no obvious position of weakness in their attack into which Chiesa can easily be deposited.

Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz are all already off the mark for the new Premier League campaign, with seven goals and five assists between them in the first three games.

Salah’s long-term Anfield future is the subject of speculation due to the fact he is now in the final year of his contract at Liverpool, but his position in the line-up – specifically in his favoured right-wing berth – is not in question.

Luis Diaz was linked with a move away all summer, but the Colombian produced an electric display on the left flank in last week’s victory over Brentford and then went on to score a brace against Manchester United, while Jota has performed well as the central striker and Dominik Szoboszlai is the ideal fit for the No.10 role in Slot’s system.

But one of Chiesa’s key strengths is his versatility. The Italian is equally comfortable on either wing and can even play centrally as a second striker or No.10. Although he might not command an immediate starting place, he can provide high-quality cover in any of the Reds front four positions.

His arrival also affords Slot a greater degree of tactical flexibility, allowing the Dutch tactician to field Salah centrally, deploy a more conventional front two or, for instance, to play with Chiesa and Salah as inside forwards in a 3-4-3.

Salah insurance

Chiesa has effectively replaced Salah once already, with the Italian’s emergence at Fiorentina coming quickly after the Egyptian’s 2015 loan spell in Florence ended. And while Chiesa has the potential to serve as Salah’s long-term heir at Anfield if the 32-year-old decides to leave at the end of the season, the bargain new arrival could be just as valuable filling in for him this term.

A hamstring injury forced Salah to miss 10 games between January and March last season and the Liverpool No.11 never quite recovered top form over the rest of the campaign. It is no coincidence that the Reds’ title challenge ran out of steam across the same period.

While Liverpool already possess versatile forwards beneath their current first-choice options in Cody Gakpo and Darwin Nunez, both are better suited to either playing off the left or as a central striker. And although Harvey Elliott can operate as a left-footed right winger, he is a more natural fit as a No.10, lacking the speed and directness of Salah to threaten in behind opposition defences.

Chiesa is a much better fit as a fill-in for Salah if the veteran forward falls injured or is rotated out of the side at times to preserve his fitness.

Productivity

The reason Chiesa’s stock had plummeted so low prior to his Liverpool switch was down to persistent injuries and perceived undulating form over the past couple of seasons.

But when fit and firing, the Azzurri star scores and assists at a rate that, of Liverpool’s current attacking options, only Salah regularly exceeds. And even through his more recent injury-disrupted seasons, Chiesa has remained remarkably productive.

Last season, for example, in a term that was not considered an example of a vintage Chiesa campaign, he scored nine Serie A goals and provided two assists from 25 starts and eight substitute’s appearances. He also ranked in the 98th percentile among Serie A forwards for shot-creating actions per 90 minutes (4.79) and progressive carries (4.55). He was in the 94th percentile for expected assisted goals per 90 (0.25) and the 88th percentile for successful take-ons (1.43).

In the 2022-23 season, he made just six starts, with a further 15 appearances off the bench. His return of two goals and five assists for that Serie A campaign appears miserly, but over just 843 minutes of game time, it averages out as a goal involvement every 120 minutes.

Motivation

“I’m so happy to be a Liverpool player,” Chiesa said as he was unveiled the Reds latest signing. “When [the sporting director] Richard Hughes called me and he said, ‘Do you want to join Liverpool?’ – and the coach called me – I said yes immediately because I know the history of this club, I know what it represents to the fans … I felt the people I talked to put a lot of faith and trust in me and that is what I wanted.”

Chiesa’s excitement at signing for Liverpool is evident. And after being unceremoniously shipped out by Juventus, who’d paid €60 million to sign him from Fiorentina less than four years ago, he finds himself at a juncture in his career in which his athletic peak is conceivable still ahead of him and he has plenty to prove.

At his best, Chiesa is one of the most direct, fearsome and malleable attackers in Europe – a status he has earned through his performances at the highest club and international levels.

If Liverpool can unlock that level of play from Chiesa and get him back to top form, the first signing of the Slot era could rank alongside any of the great bargain buys Jurgen Klopp oversaw at Anfield.

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