Prior to the first official match of the season, many observers expected Nicolò Fagioli to start for Juventus in the absence of Paul Pogba. Nonetheless, the young midfielder remained on the bench for the whole 90 minutes.

During the second half, the comfortable scoreline against Sassuolo allowed Max Allegri to put his guard down and introduce a host of youngsters. Fabio Miretti, Nicolò Rovella and Matias Soulé were all granted minutes… But not Fagioli.

According to la Gazzetta dello Sport via JuventusNews24, the pecking order in the middle of the park has changed recently, and the 21-year-old could be on the outs.

So while most of us expected Fagioli to be a part of the first team this season, the source believes that he could be sent on loan for the second season in a row.

The Juventus youth product spent the previous campaign at Cremonese, helping the club secure a historic promotion. Therefore, the Serie A new boys are reportedly hellbent on having the midfielder at their disposal for another campaign.

Last week, Fagioli signed a new contract with Juventus which runs until 2026. So while some foresaw an immediate role for the player in Turin, it appears that the long-term was only meant to give the management more leverage on the transfer market.