Federico Chiesa has told Arne Slot exactly what he wants to hear amid Liverpool transfer interest

Liverpool are the only Premier League club yet to make a signing. However, that could soon change given their interest in Juventus winger Federico Chiesa.

The Italian has been exiled from first-team plans by new boss Thiago Motta and the Reds are spying a nifty snatch with the player valued at just £13m as he enters the final year of his contract. Chiesa has been left out of the club’s two league games so far this term and an exit seems nigh.

The 26-year-old has played either on the left or as a supporting striker in recent seasons but has mostly featured on the right across his whole career. Liverpool notably have few natural right-wing options behind Mohamed Salah, who is in the final year of his own contract.

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The Egyptian is being tipped to leave upon its expiry next summer, meaning Arne Slot would need to find a replacement. It is uncertain whether Chiesa himself would be the man to fill that void but in the short-term, his versatility appeals to the new Anfield boss.

Liverpool have not had to worry too much about right-wing options given Salah’s historic healthy injury record, but last season’s hamstring injury highlighted the need to future-proof the position despite Harvey Elliott’s deputy stint.

The worry for Liverpool with Chiesa is that he himself has struggled with injuries in recent years. Six months after starring for Italy in their triumphant Euro 2020 campaign, the attacker sustained a cruciate ligament injury that ended his 2021-22 season.

He has not managed to hit the same heights of form ever since, the player admitting that the injury “slowed down my career”. However, over the summer, ahead of Euro 2024, he was keen to underline that he has come out a more rounded player because of it and feels he is nearing full strength once again.

“[The injury] taught me a lot,” he told France Football. “Before, I was probably a more instinctive, impulsive player, and maybe my game changed a bit, but not my speed. Now I’ve gotten very close to the level I was at before the injury.”

This will be pleasing for Slot to hear, albeit medical checks still need to be completed and passed. The good news is that Chiesa is in a good headspace when it comes to his full fitness but his lack of game time in the opening knockings of the season will curb enthusiasm initially.

Chiesa has critics to silence, many of whom fear he is unable to reach the levels he showed at Euro 2020 three years ago. As for Liverpool, they would be getting an asset who was voted Italy's player of the year in 2021, now with a point to prove, for a small fee without disturbing the peace within the current squad.