How will Massimiliano Allegri use Moise Kean?

When Cristiano Ronaldo officially informed Massimiliano Allegri and Juventus of his desire to leave Turin this summer, the club were efficient in bringing in a replacement.

Before Ronaldo’s stunning return to Manchester United had started to gain serious traction, the Bianconeri were plotting their own sweet reunion of their own – only considerably more low key.

21-year-old Moise Kean was the man they wanted to bring back, not only to compete with Alvaro Morata and Kaio Jorge for a starting berth in Massimiliano Allegri’s XI but to essentially replace the irreplaceable as well.

Unfortunately, that’s how some will measure the success of Kean’s return. Well, let me give you one bold take, people: Kean isn’t going to come close to matching Ronaldo’s output in a Bianconeri shirt, so let’s not even start establishing potential comparisons. This is just a 21-year-old kid happy to be back at the club in which he enjoyed his breakthrough. Let’s give him a chance.

One man who’ll certainly be giving him a chance to blossom for the second time in the truffle capital is Allegri, the boss who oversaw Kean’s initial rise at the club during the 2018/19 season. The young Italian forward certainly isn’t guaranteed a spot in Allegri’s starting XI when the players return from the first international break of the campaign, but there’s no doubt we’ll get to see plenty of him throughout 2021/22.

How could the Juventus boss utilise him, though? Let’s take a look at three possible options for the fairly versatile striker.

Option 1 – Lone striker (4-3-3/4-2-3-1)

For much of his senior career, Kean has been deployed as the lone striker whether in a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3.

The 21-year-old certainly has the potential to quickly usurp Alvaro Morata as Allegri’s favourite number nine. However, it seems unlikely for Allegri to use a 4-3-3 with Kean leading the line as that would likely see Dybala shifted out to the right – an unfavoured role he performed during the 2018/19 season.

But, a 4-2-3-1 with Dybala behind Kean is possible. This is a formation that brings about natural balance and one I’m sure we’ll see some of throughout the campaign. In Kean, Juventus have a striker capable of compromising the vertical compactness of the opposition due to his willingness to stretch the last line of defences with penetrative runs in behind. This, in turn, will create a haven of space for Dybala to enjoy between the lines. Overall, the dynamic wouldn’t be too dissimilar to Morata’s relationship with La Joya.

Option 2 – Alongside Paulo Dybala (4-4-2/3-5-2)

Allegri has used two variants (apologies if that word made you shiver in the current COVID context) of the 4-4-2 to start the season. It’s certainly a system he trusts and one you can expect to return for the ‘big’ games.

However, there’s been recent talk of the possible deployment of a 3-5-2. Either way, Kean could be used as part of a front two with Dybala. Morata’s also a possibility considering his tendency to drop between the lines, but the Argentine would certainly be the number one choice to partner the Italian if he’s available.

Thus, Dybala would perform a second striker function, as he has done to start the season, with Kean serving as the traditional number nine.

Option 3 – Winger (4-3-3)

While primarily a striker, Kean is also capable of playing out wide as a winger. At PSG, 13 of his 45 appearances came as a wide man (seven off the left, six off the right), although he was only able to score twice when deployed on the flanks.

Should Allegri opt to use the 4-3-3 he utilised throughout pre-season, Dybala is a sure bet to start as the false nine. Thus, it’s key that Juventus boast a pair of outlets on either flank. However, in Federico Chiesa and Kean, they certainly possess those exact profiles of wide men. Kean, if deployed out wide, wouldn’t perform your traditional winger function. Instead, he’d take up narrow positions in the half-spaces and seek to rotate with the free-roaming Dybala as much as possible.

He’d essentially be playing the role of a pseudo-striker. There wouldn’t be much touchline hugging and looking to beat players one-v-one, with runs in-behind and the occupation of half-spaces more prominent features of Moise Kean: the ‘winger’.

The young Italian might struggle to initially get in the side as a striker, so this is a fairly creative alternative to get him in the starting XI.