Arne Slot may be willing to allow one player in particular to leave Liverpool this month despite being an admirer of the man in question.
The previous transfer window ended with the Reds securing the cut-price addition of Federico Chiesa from Juventus, but the Italian’s first four months at Anfield have been a tale of constant frustration.
Fitness problems and illness have restricted him to a mere four appearances totalling 123 minutes, and his sole Premier League outing came as a substitute against Bournemouth in September (Transfermarkt).
According to transfer insider Graeme Bailey for TBR Football, the 27-year-old’s representatives have approached Liverpool chiefs to ask about the possibility of a return to Italy in January amid his frustration over a lack of game-time, despite a realisation that other forwards may be performing too well to drop.
Although Slot likes Chiesa, the head coach is understanding of the forward’s situation and would let him return to Serie A if that is his wish, with Napoli, Roma, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Atalanta and Fiorentina all thought to be interested in acquiring him on loan.
The Reds would only sanction an exit if one of those clubs were amenable to covering the majority of his wages, which Capology cite at £150,000 per week.
Even since making his comeback against Southampton a fortnight ago after nearly three months out, it’s been a case of one step forwards and two steps back for Chiesa, who missed the subsequent win over Tottenham due to illness.
He was also omitted from the 5-0 thrashing of West Ham last weekend, which Slot put down to the 27-year-old needing extra training sessions in order to bring himself up to speed after missing so many matches over the autumn.
Liverpool currently have all of their senior forwards available, and four of them found the net in that romp at the London Stadium, so it’s hard to see any of them being left out by choice in favour of the luckless Italian.
The Reds have eight matches in 25 days across four different competitions over the next month, including an FA Cup tie against League Two strugglers Accrington Stanley and a Champions League visit to PSV Eindhoven which could be inconsequential if the Reds guarantee top spot in the standings before then.
Such fixtures might seem perfect for Chiesa to get the game-time that he badly needs and wants, but if he is to be afford those opportunities, he simply must make the most of them in order to prove himself to Slot.
Let’s hope we can eventually see the player who lit up Euro 2020 when his country won the tournament, rather than a continuation of the one who’s endured a false start to his Liverpool career.
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