Juventus: Why giving Federico Bernardeschi a lifeline might be a good idea

Ever since joining Juventus from Fiorentina for about 40 million euros, left-footed winger Federico Bernardeschi has been a major disappointment. Although he occasionally has flashes, Bernardeschi looks nothing like the wonderful player we saw in Firenze. His first touch even looks amateurish, and that says nothing of his poor decisions and end product in the final third.

For the past year, we have heard nothing but transfer rumors linking Bernardeschi with a move out of Turin. And these rumors have been met with hope from Juventini, who are fed up with giving Bernardeschi’s second and third chances. They don’t doubt that Berna can bounce back, but the feeling is that if he is to return to his previous form, it would only happen somewhere else.

Incoming manager Max Allegri reportedly feels differently. Take this with a pinch of salt, because we’re hearing a lot of, um, interesting rumors about what Allegri wants to do. (For example, reunite with Miralem Pjanic.)

According to a report from Sky Sport Italia, via JuveFC.com on Twitter, Allegri has a role planned for Federico Bernardeschi in his upcoming project. The report adds that the project is designed to help players mentally, as it sounds like Allegri wants to upgrade the quality of some of the players currently struggling.

Juventus keeping Federico Bernardeschi might pay off in the long run

The likes of Bernardeschi and Rodrigo Bentancur are prime candidates for Allegri’s special attention under this presumed project. Bentancur was great and led the team in assists in Serie A in 2019-2020, but he was downright atrocious in 2020-2021, proving to be a massive liability in midfield. Bernardeschi was even worse in both 2019-2020 and 2020-2021.

How much hope do I have for Bernardeschi? Admittedly, not much. But I do have a little. His displays with the Italian national team have been excellent. He looks so much better for the Azzurri than he does for the Bianconeri, leading me to wonder if he just needs the right manager to get him to play like he used to. Could the talent REALLY have left him? I don’t think so.

But I have another, more pragmatic reason for being OK with giving Bernardeschi another chance. His value stinks. Nobody wants him. The swap deals we hear involving Bernardeschi are either insulting or involve players who might not even start for Juventus, like Alessio Romagnoli. 

It’s not like selling Bernardeschi is going to help Juve THAT much financially. But if Allegri can work his magic and get Bernardeschi to play with even the confidence he’s showing for the national team, then not only could Juve up his value, but they could also get more production out of Bernardeschi than the money they would receive in a transfer.