Theo Walcott needed no words to show how he feels about Federico Chiesa after hearing a wild verdict on the Liverpool star.
The Italian arrived at Anfield in a £12.5 million move from Juventus in 2024 and was Arne Slot’s sole acquisition that summer on the way to winning the Premier League title.
Chiesa featured only 14 times for the Reds across all competitions with all three of his starts resulting in defeats, including the shock FA Cup exit at the hands of Plymouth Argyle.
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However, Chiesa was the hero for Liverpool in the league opener against Bournemouth as he emerged from the bench to restore the Reds lead in the 4-2 win.
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
It appears that the forward will have more of a role to play at Anfield this season and Walcott could not believe what he heard about the Liverpool star.
Theo Walcott couldn’t believe Rebecca Lowe dismissed Federico Chiesa
When discussing the squad depth between Liverpool and Arsenal on It’s Called Soccer, co-host Rebecca Lowe described Chiesa as “eh” which caused Walcott’s jaw to drop in bemusement.
While they agreed that Arsenal’s squad depth is stronger than the Reds, Walcott couldn’t contain his shock upon hearing Chiesa be dismissed so easily.
The 27-year-old was considered a £100 million player before sustaining an ACL injury in 2022 and spent almost the entirety of last season returning to match fitness.
Furthermore, Bayern Munich enquired about Chiesa during the negotiations that saw Luis Diaz leave Anfield for Germany this summer alongside a host of European clubs who registered interest in the Italian.
Although he barely featured last season, Chiesa reiterated his desire to remain at Anfield amid the emerging interest in his signature and fight for a place in Slot’s plans.
As TBR Football reported in May, Chiesa’s impeccable behaviour behind the scenes impressed the Reds, meaning the club were more than happy for the forward to remain a part of the first team set-up if he was happy with his role.
Chiesa was excluded from the 25-man squad for the Champions League but has featured in all Liverpool’s league matches thus far.
Federico Chiesa will be important for Arne Slot at Liverpool
Even though Chiesa found opportunities very few and far between during his maiden year at Anfield, he showed glimmers of what the supporters can expect of him this season.
He opened his account for the Reds in the 4-0 win against Accrington Stanley in the FA Cup and scored what proved to be a consolation goal in the 2-1 loss against Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup final.
Building on his goal off the bench against Bournemouth, Chiesa could be Slot’s own version of Liverpool legend Divock Origi, who became a cult hero at Anfield primarily due to his impact off the bench.
Indeed, that is a prestigious title to live up to, but the Reds lacked a threat from the dugout last season. Considering he will be absent in Europe, Chiesa will be fresh to terrorise the opposition defence in the domestic fixtures and could emerge as the dark horse in this Liverpool squad.