Chiesa’s Liverpool Struggle Raises Summer Exit Talk
Federico Chiesa’s Liverpool chapter has yet to find rhythm, and according to reporting credited to Calciomercato, patience on all sides is beginning to wear thin. What once felt like a clever market opportunity now carries the tone of a short-lived experiment, one that may quietly conclude when the transfer window reopens in June.
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Limited Chances, Lingering Doubts
Chiesa’s outing in the 3-0 FA Cup win over Brighton represented his fifth start of the season. Opportunities have been scattered across competitions, Wolverhampton in the Premier League, Southampton and Crystal Palace in the League Cup, Barnsley in the FA Cup. Yet continuity has eluded him.
Photo: IMAGO
Used as a false nine against Brighton, he “ran a lot, and made himself available to the team, but didn’t make a difference in front of goal”. It was industrious, but not influential. For a forward attempting to climb Arne Slot’s attacking hierarchy, industry alone rarely shifts perception.
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Slot, as noted, has long viewed him as a “second- or third-choice option”. Matches like this were designed to challenge that status. Instead, they have reinforced it.
Transfer Value and Market Reality
Liverpool’s January stance was shaped by logistics rather than faith. A replacement could not be sourced in time, so Chiesa stayed. Summer will be different.
Valuation sits between €15 million and €20 million, a fee influenced by his €7.5 million annual salary and long-term contract running until 2028. Suitors must invest in both transfer and wages.
Interest from Juventus and West Ham surfaced in winter. A Serie A return currently appears the most plausible route, particularly given his desire “to play, to feel like a key player”.
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Italy Future Under Scrutiny
International prospects add another layer. Italy boss Gennaro Gattuso is weighing selection decisions ahead of World Cup playoffs.
Despite a recent London dinner involving Premier League based Italians, inclusion is not guaranteed. Chiesa previously declined autumn call-ups, and for “do-or-die matches, he needs motivated players, ready to give their all”.
Gattuso will judge both physical readiness and mental sharpness. A fully restored Chiesa remains, in the words of the report, “an added asset to the national team”. The question is whether that version reappears soon enough.
Our View – Anfield Index Analysis
From a Liverpool supporter’s perspective, this situation feels less like failure and more like misalignment. Chiesa arrived as a dynamic wide threat, direct, aggressive, emotionally charged. Instead, he has been used sparingly and sometimes out of position, including that false nine role against Brighton.
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Fans watching closely might argue he has never been granted the tactical ecosystem needed to thrive. Confidence players require rhythm, and rhythm demands minutes. Six hundred minutes scattered across cups and rotated lineups rarely builds authority.
There is also the adaptation factor. Premier League tempo, physicality, and defensive structure differ sharply from Serie A.
That said, Liverpool’s forward line is evolving. If Chiesa cannot displace incumbents or reshape matches from the bench, the club’s model dictates efficiency. Selling at €15 million to €20 million, reinvesting in a profile better suited to Slot’s system, would be consistent with recent strategy.
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