It seems that Federico Bernardeschi could be on the move soon.
Calciomercato.it claim that he could be one of the players involved in conversations between Milan and Juventus. The report names Gianluigi Donnarumma of being interest to Juve, like Alessio Romagnoli. They say that Daniele Rugani and Merih Demiral are potential targets for them as well, but Bernardeschi could be part of discussions too.
They state that Bernardeschi is a boyhood Milan fan and relaunching his career would be a very good way for him to get back on track.
As things stand, Bernardeschi has had a poor season. It probably has been the worst season he’s ever had. The Italian international has been playing as a number 10 in Maurizio Sarri’s 4-3-1-2 shape. He is yet to score or assist even once in the Serie A, even though he has one goal to his name in the Champions League.
He has looked out of his depth in that position and Paulo Dybala has stolen the spotlight, playing in his position or upfront.
But this was never his position, in the first place. At Fiorentina, Bernardeschi’s best position was always the right-wing. Before coming to Turin, Bernardeschi was a regular on the left-wing for La Viola. He would often play on the right too.
In the 2016-17 campaign, Bernardeschi had 42 appearances in all competitions to his name. He contributed to 19 goals. 13 of them came when he was playing on the left. The rest of them came when he would play as a second striker or in attacking midfield.
He came to Juve in the summer of 2017 but was never given a free run in the side. He signed for a fee of £35 million. In his first season, he made only seven starts for the club under Massimiliano Allegri. He came up with 10 goal contributions in total. And he would play on the right.
He was behind Douglas Costa and Juan Cuadrado in the pecking order. In the 2018-19 campaign, Juve’s flair players had diminished. Bernardeschi made 39 appearances, contributing to eight goals. Only 22 were starts.
This season, being played out of position isn’t helping Bernardeschi. And external reasons have been in fault more than himself. Milan should keep note of them.
As for the Rossoneri, they have Suso playing on the right. Hakan Calhanoglu’s move has been a failure, with Giacomo Bonaventura still coming back to full fitness. Rafael Leao is 19 and is growing into his role.
Suso’s situation isn’t showing much promise. The Spaniard has scored only once this season.
The underperformance of these players is why Milan have drawn links with Everton Soares too, as per Di Marzio’s reports (via Milan News).
It shows that they are looking for a wide player. Bernardeschi needs to be in a wide position once again. And besides, what is better than the club he loves?
His loss of confidence is a big reason for his downfall, but a move like Milan could end up suiting both parties.
