As Much As We All Love Federico Chiesa, He Still Has A Lot Of Work To Do

Throughout the season there are times when as fans we have to look at what we have and take a step back. During the game against Napoli, there were many moments where frustration set in with one of the biggest stars on Fiorentina. Within the first 25 minutes of the match, Federico Chiesa was offsides twice and missed shots on goal badly. These can be frustrating to watch until you remember that Chiesa is 20 years old. Even though Federico comes from a football background, and has all the potential in the world, we cannot look at him as a polished product just yet.

Maybe this is an issue that Fiorentina fans are not currently having. It is frustrating to see a player that the franchise is pushing as their star make silly mistakes. Federico Chiesa shows flashes of being a top talent. He is fun to watch when he is playing well, but is also very susceptible to being drawn off-sides. Everyone that has played the sport, knows that there is always that one player on the team that can never stay onside. Chiesa is that player. He needs to be focused more when playing to make sure that he stays on-side. Of course, Chiesa is fast and it is tough to read the defense at times. Fiorentina would have won the game against Napoli with a goal that was disallowed because of a Chiesa off-side call. Silly penalties like that can be a big difference in a match.

Another aspect of Chiesa’s game that needs improvement is shot selection. Chiesa seems to force shots that go wide or are too high. This is a major problem because he is essentially just throwing the ball away to the opposing team. When the young Italian is on point, he has a great shot and a propensity for scoring. The problem is there are times when he rushes the shot when the ball could have been passed off to a teammate with a better opportunity. Again, this is nitpicking but Chiesa needs to learn when is the right time to take the chance and when to play unselfish football.

The last major flaw is taking on defenders. Chiesa has great footwork on the ball and is confident in his abilities. When taking on defenders one must be careful. Chiesa has a habit of trying to make a big play against a gaggle of defenders and losing the ball. Sure the times when he succeeds it is highlight reel worthy, but losing the ball in the lower third of the pitch is never a good thing. This also will come with more experience. Chiesa will learn to lay the ball off and not force his dribble just like his shot selection.

Overall, there is a lot to be excited about when looking at Federico Chiesa. He has star potential and is under contract for a while. There are just a few crutches in his game that need to be corrected. If Stefano Pioli does not correct these issues, Chiesa could end up plateauing too soon. This would force the young Italian to not reach his full potential. If these aspects can be fixed, Federico Chiesa will truly be one of the better stars in Serie A if not the world.