In the absence of the injured Juan Cuadrado and the suspended Danilo, Andrea Pirlo finds himself facing a dilemma on the right side of defense.
With no natural options available, Juventus will have to improvise an unusual solution.
Therefore, the young tactician could one again opt to throw Federico Bernardeschi into another unfamiliar territory.
The winger arrived to Turin in 2017 as one of the most talented players in the newly rising generation for Italy.
But besides few flashes, the former Fiorentina man never managed to convince the Bianconeri fans of his ability to become a top player within the club.
In 2019, Bernardeschi was arguably playing his best football for Juve, as he was the main supporter for Ronaldo when the Portuguese led the side for a thrilling comeback against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League.
During that season, the 27-year-old was even being favored by Max Allegri to start instead of Paulo Dybala.
The following season, Berna was mostly being deployed by Maurizio Sarri as an attacking midfielder who would support Dybala and Ronaldo.
Nonetheless, with the club’s major two stars unwilling to do the dirty work, it was the Italian who would always end up dropping back to become the fourth midfielder on the defensive phase.
This season, Pirlo had even trusted Bernardeschi in further deeper roles, which means that he’s having to work even harder between supporting the strikers in attack and the backline in defense.
Although Federico’s hard-working mentality should undoubtedly be appreciated by the club and fans alike, it just might be his undoing.
The former Viola star rose to the scene as a creative force for his former club, which meant that other players had to carry the water, whilst he would be the on trusted with the ball.
However, after arriving to Juventus, he had slowly but surely turned into a water carrier himself whilst other talented players acted as the main architects.
The problem with this notion is that running hard for the entire match ends up having a negative effect on the player’s technical ability – A man who’s almost out of breath could end up succumbing the simplest of passes.
Whilst the Bianconeri always appreciated the hard-working soldiers within their ranks – the likes of Alessio Tacchinardi and Simone Padoin – Bernardeschi was destined for something different.
Therefore, it would be shame if the Italian international decides to give up on his talent and opt for a for a more industrial role.
At 27, Berna doesn’t have too much time to choose, as his exciting style from his early playing days is slowly becoming nothing more than a distant memory.
