Bought by Juventus from Schalke 04 in 2021 after a loan spell for €20.5m, Weston McKennie has had a hard time making a name for himself there, which led to a loan spell at Leeds United for the second half of last season.
While he played extremely regularly for the Elland Road club, he never had the meaningful impact plenty expected from him, and eventually returned to Turin.
He failed to find himself an exit route this summer, and he has featured in all Serie A games to date, but many haven’t forgotten his poor performances before his return, nor what happened at Leeds, least of all journalist Giancarlo Padovan, who had some stern words about the USA international on Radio Sportiva, relayed by Area Napoli.
He replied: “I think he hurts wherever he plays. The facts are there to prove it. He comes from a very disappointing experience in England. The thing that makes me most curious is that not only Juventus have confirmed him in their squad, the manager also considers him almost a starter. I would honestly bet on other names, but the pitch, as always, will be the supreme judge.”
That was a clear reference of McKennie’s time at Leeds United by Padovan, but he is right in saying that despite the use of the American, Juventus have done well over the first three games of the season.
While they did draw 1-1 to Bologna at home in their second game, during which the 25-year-old played just nine minutes, they have also beaten Udinese 3-0 away (he came on for the whole second half) and Empoli 2-0 away (he started and played 83 minutes).
Therefore, as things stand, it seems the longer the former Leeds United loanee is on the pitch, the better Juventus are.
