The_Steve Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 Here’s what some Juve fans think McKennie is one of our most improved players this season and he deserves credit for working hard to win back his place in the team. His experiences in Germany and the loan spell at Leeds seem to have prepared him to work harder on the team to retain the trust of his manager. https://www.juvefc.com/mckennie-reveals-how-his-juventus-spell-has-improved-him/ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulMcGrath_5 Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
useless Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 He's been a regular for Juventus for the last three seasons, if Allegri rates him and Emery too - which would be the case in the event we signed him, then surely that tell us something, maybe they know a lot more than the people who've probably barely ever watched him play - including myself By most accounts he was very good for Juventus this season just gone, I saw Juve fans say they offered him a new deal, so this idea that he's a 'reject' isn't true either Also Emerey improves players, before he arrived Luiz wasn't exactly a world beater, was decent enough, but was being linked to Arsenal as a squad option when they were nowhere near as good as they are now, who's to say Emery can't do the same for McKennie, who again seemingly isn't a bad player to begin with On his time with Leeds, from what I read they tried to play him as DM which doesn't suit his qualities 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Jareth Posted June 11 Popular Post Share Posted June 11 So his mates were giving Leeds fans stick? Welcome Weston! 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken Field Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 Being a Villa fan through the years has made me a pessimist, I have the tendency to find disaster in everything and always find issues at Villa to be annoyed about, so I get why the fanbase has the tendency to be extremely negative about our incomings and think the worst about all topics, as I tend to be one of them. But we must really start being a bit positive with Emery in charge and trust that he knows football better than us, we've just had the best season for 40 years - if Emery want Mckennie (and Barkley), then they will fit our system and be good signings. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villan-scott Posted June 11 VT Supporter Share Posted June 11 8 minutes ago, Jareth said: So his mates were giving Leeds fans stick? Welcome Weston! I like him and his friends even more now. Hopefully if he comes they can continue giving Leeds fans even more stick. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vive_La_Villa Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 It does seem the spell at Leeds was an exception rather than the norm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sne Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 Yeah, fair dues to him getting his act together after party-gate at Juventus and then that dreadful loan at Leeds. Does seem we have a type as Barkley has a similar history and trajectory in the last year. Just gotta hope last season is the new standard and not a blip Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJBOB Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 I think the Leeds time will be his baseline until fans see otherwise but that really isn’t indicative of his potential. At his best, McKennie is an all action midfielder capable of playing as an 8, a 10, a 6 or as RWB. But his best position is a box to box, attacking oriented midfielder. He has a good range of passing, surprisingly good first touch and control - if not a bit helter skelter when navigating traffic. He’s surprisingly good in the air, with a big leap for his height. Got decent pace but not explosive and tends to tire at the end of a match. His biggest weakness has been fitness, motivation, and the inability to have a settled position because of his versatility. If you read that profile 2 years ago, it would very similar to McGinn - and not Luiz - and that’s really the profile you want to compare against. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Jareth Posted June 11 Popular Post Share Posted June 11 I shall judge him on how he says - "aluminum" 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duke313 Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 2 minutes ago, DJBOB said: I think the Leeds time will be his baseline until fans see otherwise but that really isn’t indicative of his potential. At his best, McKennie is an all action midfielder capable of playing as an 8, a 10, a 6 or as RWB. But his best position is a box to box, attacking oriented midfielder. He has a good range of passing, surprisingly good first touch and control - if not a bit helter skelter when navigating traffic. He’s surprisingly good in the air, with a big leap for his height. Got decent pace but not explosive and tends to tire at the end of a match. His biggest weakness has been fitness, motivation, and the inability to have a settled position because of his versatility. If you read that profile 2 years ago, it would very similar to McGinn - and not Luiz - and that’s really the profile you want to compare against. Same as Tielemans last summer, only thing people referenced was his poor final season. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lexicon Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 2 hours ago, Cizzler said: Yikes, he was dreadful at Leeds. A massive downgrade on Dougie - surprised we don't just take the cash, as looked miles off it when he played in the PL before. Barkley and McKennie in, Douglas Luiz out is interesting prep for a CL run. Well it's two players who can play in an Emery system (presumably) rather than one, which is handy at least. Plus the PSR/FFP fix, plus a high-potential youngster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LondonLax Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 1 hour ago, DJBOB said: I think the Leeds time will be his baseline until fans see otherwise but that really isn’t indicative of his potential. At his best, McKennie is an all action midfielder capable of playing as an 8, a 10, a 6 or as RWB. But his best position is a box to box, attacking oriented midfielder. He has a good range of passing, surprisingly good first touch and control - if not a bit helter skelter when navigating traffic. He’s surprisingly good in the air, with a big leap for his height. Got decent pace but not explosive and tends to tire at the end of a match. His biggest weakness has been fitness, motivation, and the inability to have a settled position because of his versatility. If you read that profile 2 years ago, it would very similar to McGinn - and not Luiz - and that’s really the profile you want to compare against. Sounds like the new Reo-coker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Steve Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 1 hour ago, Jareth said: So his mates were giving Leeds fans stick? Welcome Weston! Like the guy already Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steero113 Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 1 hour ago, DJBOB said: I think the Leeds time will be his baseline until fans see otherwise but that really isn’t indicative of his potential. There are videos all over youtube of evidence of him being excellent post his Leeds United spell. Why isn't the narrative "he's been excellent this season at Juventus, a far bigger club with more pressure and expectation than Leeds United where he played under a crap manager in a side that was relegated". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Steve Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 Some interesting quotes from the lad himself Leeds' option to make McKennie's transfer permanent for a $38 million fee had seemed like a bargain in January 2023. Not surprisingly, the club declined to activate it. "I felt like it was the first time that I had failed," McKennie says now. "It knocked me down completely. It put me in the situation of having to prove myself all over again." His foot injury didn’t help, but he buckled down and had a great season at Juve by all accounts. "It was difficult for me, honestly," he says. "But I did it to myself. And my time at Leeds, as bad as it did go, was very important. It was a big moment in my career as far as my development. I am where I am today because of everything I've been through. And I'm happy about it. I wouldn't change any of it." https://www.espn.co.uk/football/story/_/id/40016417/usmnt-weston-mckennie-juventus-serie-leeds-schoenfeld He’s also very liked in the dressing room - praised for his attitude and demeanour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villa4europe Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 He's the killer in the whole thing isn't he? Can kind of get behind selling luiz just about but I don't like it, can get behind signing IJ but chucking this guy in to the mix is shit The way the FFP wrangling stuff works means that we'll no doubt over pay for him too, I reckon £25m for him which is madness Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJBOB Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 33 minutes ago, LondonLax said: Sounds like the new Reo-coker Funnily enough, I do see the similarities but Reo-Coker never had the passing or dribbling that McKennie has. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJBOB Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 26 minutes ago, Steero113 said: There are videos all over youtube of evidence of him being excellent post his Leeds United spell. Why isn't the narrative "he's been excellent this season at Juventus, a far bigger club with more pressure and expectation than Leeds United where he played under a crap manager in a side that was relegated". Well I suppose prem fans. Having seen a lot of him from the USA career, I view Leeds as the aberration more than anything else. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alakagom Posted June 11 Share Posted June 11 13 minutes ago, villa4europe said: He's the killer in the whole thing isn't he? Can kind of get behind selling luiz just about but I don't like it, can get behind signing IJ but chucking this guy in to the mix is shit The way the FFP wrangling stuff works means that we'll no doubt over pay for him too, I reckon £25m for him which is madness If Matty Cash is being valued at 25mn than McKennie has potential to justify the price tag. He's been main starter for Juve, even if he adds physicality and depth so that we can actually deal with teams like Newcastle/Spurs that gave us whalloping he can prove to be good squad player. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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