Chiesa Open to Liverpool Exit as Italian Pushes for Playing Time
Federico Chiesa has told The Athletic he 'wants to play' and is weighing a departure from Anfield, where he has been reduced to a peripheral role behind Alexander Isak.
Chiesa Open to Liverpool Exit as Italian Pushes for Playing Time
Federico Chiesa is weighing a departure from Liverpool this summer, with the Italy forward telling The Athletic he "wants to play" amid limited minutes at Anfield.
The 27-year-old has struggled for consistent game time since joining from Juventus in 2024. Chiesa has made only a handful of Premier League starts under Arne Slot and finds himself behind Alexander Isak in the pecking order, with Liverpool's reworked attack reducing the path back into the side.
According to The Athletic, Chiesa is open to a move and has communicated his desire for regular football. No fee, destination or contract terms have been disclosed, and Liverpool are yet to publicly comment on his future.
The same story surfaced in Tuesday's BBC Sport gossip column, which framed his potential exit as a fresh start for the player and a squad decision for the club. Details remained thin, in line with midweek roundup reporting.
Liverpool's summer recruitment has reshaped their forward line. The arrival of Isak, who has hit the ground running at Anfield, has compressed the route to minutes for wide attackers, with Cody Gakpo, Luis Díaz and Mohamed Salah all in the mix. Slot has a settled front three in the early weeks of the season, leaving Chiesa competing for the spare wide berth or rotation minutes.
For Chiesa, the path back to prominence looks narrow. His Anfield spell never recovered from a difficult debut campaign cut short by injury, and the prospect of being a peripheral figure in a Champions League squad does not fit the profile of a player who arrived to add variety to an elite attack. Italy duty still beckons for the forward, and regular minutes are a precondition for his international ambitions.
What Chiesa offers — direct running, sharp movement in behind and a high-volume pressing style — is not in short supply at Anfield. Slot's system asks wide forwards to lead the press from the front and rotate through the half-spaces; the club's existing options have shown they can do that job at the level required.
Chiesa's best Liverpool moments have been fleeting. Brief cameos in cup competitions, the occasional spark from the bench, and a series of substitute appearances that never built into a sustained run. None of it added up to the kind of form that cements a starting place.
Italian clubs — including his former employers Juventus — have historically monitored his situation, while a move to a mid-table Premier League side or a return to Serie A would represent plausible destinations. No club has been publicly linked with a concrete approach in the reporting so far, and the conversation remains at the consultation stage.
Liverpool, for their part, are not understood to be actively marketing the player. Slot's depth in attack is the strongest it has been since his arrival at the club, and Chiesa's wage packet could be redirected toward further reinforcement before the window closes. The financial calculus favours a sale if a buyer can be found.
Chiesa himself is not agitating for an exit in the manner of a confrontational standoff. The reporting describes a player who recognises his standing in the squad and is signalling, through the only channel available, that he needs a different fit. Slot's full-backs and midfield have been the story of Liverpool's season so far; the wing rotation is not where the minutes are.
For Liverpool, the decision is straightforward. The forward line is over-stocked, the manager has a clear pecking order, and a controllable exit suits both parties. Whether one materialises depends on the rest of the window — and whether the Italian finds a club willing to match his asking terms.