The Federico Chiesa impact could be crucial in Liverpool’s 2026/27 season, with the Reds not having any specialist right-winger aside from the Italian and youngster Rio Ngumoha.
With Mohamed Salah exiting the club at the end of last season, Liverpool no longer has an experienced player on the right flank except Chiesa, who is yet to cement his place in Liverpool’s starting XI in his two seasons with them. Liverpool’s recent bid for Brighton & Hove Albion’s Yankuba Minteh was rejected by the latter, and the Federico Chiesa impact in Liverpool’s 2026/27 season is going to matter a lot for the Reds.
Federico Chiesa Impact: Will The Italian Finally Get A Chance To Shine?
Chiesa has played 50 matches for Liverpool so far over two seasons, scoring five goals and registering three assists. That is hardly the kind of return that should satisfy a top winger; however, in this regard, it has to be remembered that Chiesa has never been much of a goal-scorer in his career so far.
Chiesa has looked lethal from counter-attacks at times for Liverpool. Still, his ability to get into the box by beating the opposition left-back and to combine with the central midfielders of his team has been very ordinary so far. Ideally, he should improve on both of the above aspects.
For Juventus, his previous club, he scored 32 goals in 131 matches, which gave him an average of a goal in every four matches. Overall, including his numbers for Fiorentina, Chiesa has scored 71 goals in 334 matches in his club career so far. Still, his overall record is a lot better than what he has managed at Liverpool so far.
The Federico Chiesa impact has been underwhelming and has not been much of a matter of discussion so far because of Salah’s presence on the right side of the pitch. The Reds also had winger options in Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota on the left in the 2024/25 season, which saw them win the Premier League title under Arne Slot.
Chiesa won the league title that season as a Liverpool player, having played in only six matches in the Premier League that season. He thus managed to collect the league winner’s medal, but Liverpool’s 2026/27 season will require him to have a much bigger contribution.
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Liverpool’s 2026/27 season is unlikely to have any options other than Chiesa and Rio Ngumoha as right-wingers, and even with that being said, the English youngster is primarily a left-winger, who might have to play on the right if the Federico Chiesa impact does not improve this season.
Andoni Iraola, Liverpool’s new manager, has already emphasised that there is a need for the wingers to be able to play on either flank as per the team’s requirements. However, it is not always so easy, and Liverpool will almost surely feel the absence of the talismanic Salah, who scored 257 goals for the club in his decade-long association with them.
Hence, the lopsidedness the Reds have on their flanks ahead of Liverpool’s 2026/27 season, with the left flank being stacked with options, but there being hardly any proper attacking player on the right aside from Chiesa, will most definitely be felt throughout the new season. Cody Gakpo, one of the options on the left flank, might leave the club and Bradley Barcola might replace him, but that will not change the equation on the right flank; if anything, it may create more issues that Iraola will need to sort.
Should Chiesa manage to rise to the occasion this season, much of Iraola’s concerns will be alleviated. The Spaniard will rely on the Italian to have a good season this time around, which could ultimately determine whether Liverpool ends up having a successful season or not.
