Fabrizio Romano confirms Federico Chiesa transfer plans | OneFootball

The Italian winger is still trying to get the balance right at Liverpool in order to make things work.

Even though he's scored twice and made three assists in 335 minutes played so far this season, there seems to be something holding Arne Slot back from playing him on a more regular basis.

Of course, the forwards at Liverpool are all of a high quality, and so it's only natural that Federico Chiesa is having to compete with his teammates, but in time, he needs to be rewarded more often.

Unless his current situation changes, we could have a problem and in his latest Here We Go podcast episode, Fabrizio Romano gave an update on how the 28-year-old might be feeling right now.

Update on Chiesa's transfer stance

Speaking on Youtube, he said: "It's been a strange start to the season for Chiesa, also because at the very beginning of the summer window, the plan was to leave, and then everything changed several times with Arne Slot and with the management.

LFC x adidas

Shop the away range TODAY

LFC x adidas

Shop the home range today!

LFC x adidas

Shop the goalkeeper range today

LFC x adidas Third Kit

Shop the third kit range today!

"The desire of Federico Chiesa is to finish the season at Liverpool and then assess the situation in the summer. When Chiesa goes public and says 'I want to stay here, I want to compete for my spot', it's the reality. Chiesa wants to continue with Liverpool.

"Then, obviously, he wants to play - he needs to play - otherwise in January I would not be surprised if Italian clubs return to the table and try again to get Chiesa from Liverpool. They might try. But at the moment, the desire of Liverpool and Chiesa is to continue together. I don't think it's going to be an easy move in January, but interest remains and we have to follow the game time in the next two months."

It all appears to be incredibly precarious, and it's only the wider context that can explain his feelings.

The World Cup happening at the end of the season appears to be pivotal. In each of the last two International breaks, Chiesa has been left on Merseyside rather than playing for his country. That's a major problem, and until Genaro Gattusso changes his mind, the updates are likely to continue.

Mohamed Salah's start to the season with Liverpool hasn't been great, so we definitely should have seen Chiesa play on a more regular basis than he has done, especially since his fitness issues don't seem to be a problem anymore. He's available for selection almost every week, so why not play him?

Liverpool generally have a lack of forwards available compared to previous years, because Luis Diaz wasn't replaced in the transfer market, which should naturally make rotation more likely. As such, any approaches made for Chiesa in January would be blanked straight away, without compromise.

In the summer, it's a different story. Chiesa is getting older and it's understandable that he'll want to be making the most of his career, whether that's continuing to try abroad, or returning back to Italy.

Whenever he's on the pitch, he feels the admiration from the fans and he always gives his all, so his frustrations aren't shown publicly. But we might see things change quickly if Slot doesn't use him.