"It's a dream come true. I'll give everything in this shirt" - Federico Chiesa admitted at his Liverpool debut this summer.
In football, as in life, there are decisions that will prove pivotal. And in Chiesa's case, it seems not everything has gone as expected.
In the final days of the 2024 summer transfer window, the door was open for the Italian striker to join Barcelona. But in the end, he followed the call of Arne Slot to sign for Liverpool, where Chiesa has only played 3 matches this season.
It is easy to see that Chiesa will have more opportunities to start at Barcelona than in Liverpool's already crowded attack. The EURO 2020 champion moved to Anfield on August 29 for 12 million euros but has barely played in pre-season.
"I feel sorry. Chiesa missed the entire pre-season. I've said this many times. Coming to play in a high-intensity league like the Premier League is really difficult for him," Slot said.
Chiesa had to wait until 17 September for Liverpool's trip to San Siro to make his Liverpool debut. However, in reality, he only came on in injury time.
Just days later, Chiesa made his Premier League debut in the Reds' 3-0 win over Bournemouth, but 20 minutes on the pitch was not enough for the 27-year-old to make a difference.
Chiesa's lack of fitness and poor form are becoming a major problem for Liverpool, who are facing a busy fixture list and a string of injuries to key players. Since the Carabao Cup tie against West Ham in September, where the Italian played 59 minutes, Chiesa has missed the last eight games.
"I wouldn't use the word worried. But the situation is not ideal for Chiesa and us," Slot said.
After winning EURO 2020 with Italy, Chiesa was expected to become a top star. However, this striker has gradually faded over time. In the list of 23 players recently summoned by coach Luciano Spalletti, Chiesa was also absent.
With 5 other quality options in attack, even if Slot wanted to, it would still be difficult to put Chiesa in the starting lineup. In fact, many questions arose when the "Red Brigade" brought Chiesa in this summer.
Of course, Chiesa still has time to turn things around and at least become an important factor in Liverpool's rotation. But for now, the first thing the Italian international needs to do is meet the physical requirements.
