Federico Chiesan Liverpool-pettymys – Palaako Italian Tähti Kotiin?
Football is a capricious goddess, an unpredictable weaver of fate, who elevates heroes to pedestals but mercilessly devours them when the flame of their soul extinguishes. Federico Chiesa, once a gladiator of Turin, the pride of Juventus and the herald of Italy’s European Championship triumph, now stands at a crossroads—in a foreign land, with a foreign club, without a place to go. And so, like a wandering poet whose heart beats to the rhythm of his homeland, he is ready to return home.
A Harbor of Dreams? Never.
When Chiesa made the leap to the foggy island’s giant, Liverpool, last summer, many Italian fans who believed in the canteran song already doubted. It was said that his fate did not dance to the rhythm of English football, that he was not the right man to run on Anfield’s sacred turf. And how right they were. Liverpool, under its legendary wings, has birthed lyrical and ecstatic moments in football, but it was never Chiesa’s story. He was not destined to wear the hero’s cloak in the bright lights of Anfield; instead, he remained a shadow—merely a passenger in a narrative to which he did not fit.
Less than 400 minutes on the pitch all season. Three paltry appearances in the Premier League. That is the reality Chiesa has had to face in the mirror each morning, while the Reds’ supporters cheered for others, those who were part of Arne Slot’s plans. What happened to that nimble-footed virtuoso who kept Italy’s dreams alive in the Euro climax? Why did he never fit into Liverpool’s puzzle? Is it a matter of tactics, role, coach? Or has Chiesa’s flame simply flickered out?
Italy Calls – But at What Cost?
The sea washes ashore everything that finds its way there, but one cannot return home without breaking chains. Chiesa’s move to Liverpool brought with it a hefty contract, but now returning home would mean sacrifice. His salary—a staggering 7.5 million euros per year—stands as an obstacle on the path back to Italy. Napoli and Atalanta have already peeked around the corner, but it is clear that without salary concessions, Chiesa’s new songs in Serie A may remain mere echoes in the cathedrals of a bygone era.
Luciano Spalletti, the man whose choices shape new verses in Italian football history, has left Chiesa out of the national team. The message is clear: play or fade away. A return to Italy is not just a call home; it is a necessity for existence—the only way Chiesa can return to the position he once dreamed of. He is no longer the boy who danced through Denmark’s defenses at Wembley. But it is not too late to find the footprints back on the path.
The Final Verse – And There Is No Encore
Football tells stories, but unlike in theater, there is no guaranteed encore. Federico Chiesa’s chapter in Liverpool never took flight, but if he returns to Italy, his name is not yet a mere faint footnote in history. This could be his new beginning, his second coming, his melody that once again resonates in the night sky of Serie A.
But if he makes the mistake of staying in Liverpool to fight for a place he will never attain—then only a whisper of a postscript remains, a silent waltz on the streets where this man named Federico Chiesa is not known.
