Federico Chiesa may well get a rare opportunity to start for Liverpool in the FA Cup later against Barnsley, but amid rumors of a return to Italy, the reality of his situation is unavoidable now
James Findlater Content Editor
04:00, 12 Jan 2026
Federico Chiesa continues to be linked with a move away from Liverpool(Image: Getty Images)
A penny for Federico Chiesa’s thoughts at the moment.
With Mohamed Salah away at the Africa Cup of Nations, the Italian couldn’t be blamed if he thought his big opportunity was about to finally arrive at Liverpool. After all, he had been signed in the summer of 2024 in order to provide some quality backup to the Egyptian.
But while Salah has been busy guiding Egypt through to another semi-final, it’s been the same old story for Chiesa back at Anfield. The Italian has made just one start in Salah’s absence, and even he probably knows he didn’t grasp that golden opportunity against Wolves.
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Jeremie Frimpong has now firmly overtaken him as the next in line on the right wing. Whether that changes now that Conor Bradley has been ruled out for the rest of the season remains to be seen, but the reality is that Chiesa is barely any closer to earning a spot in Arne Slot’s side than he was when he first arrived on Merseyside.
It’s no surprise then that rumors are doing the rounds that a move back to Italy could be in the offing – more specifically, a return to Juventus, the club that rather unceremoniously offloaded him 18 months ago.
It must be said that much of the speculation is coming exclusively from Italy, with reports much closer to Anfield indicating that Liverpool has no plans to offload Chiesa this month.
Juventus boss Luciano Spalletti was coy when asked about re-signing Federico Chiesa(Image: Getty Images)
But after Luciano Spalletti’s rather coy response to a question about the winger recently, it’s hard to shake the feeling that Chiesa’s time at Liverpool might be reaching a somewhat predictable conclusion.
He might well get his chance in the FA Cup later, although that in itself would sum up his position with the Reds, given Slot will likely see the tie against Barnsley as a chance to rest his regular starters.
This could be the last-chance saloon for Chiesa. With Alexander Isak out and Hugo Ekitike still doubtful, Slot has offered up the Italian as a possible solution to lead the line, although even that was just suggested as a way in which to give Ekitike more of a rest in games.
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And even with the Frenchman out injured recently, there has been little action for Chiesa, with Florian Wirtz seemingly the favored option to act as a false nine of sorts.
Still, offloading Chiesa before the end of the current window would make little to no sense for Liverpool. As limited as his chances are likely to be, he is going to be needed in some capacity in order to ease the burden on the likes of Ekitike, Wirtz, Cody Gakpo and Salah once he returns.
But you can’t avoid the feeling that Chiesa’s spell at Anfield only has one ending now. It might not be this month, but Italy feels like it’s calling to him again.