USMNT star linked with Premier League move after World Cup
Juventus midfielder Weston McKennie has been linked with a move to Tottenham Hotspur. According to the Italian website Calciomercato.
This season in Serie A, McKennie has made nine appearances and registered just one assist, while in the Champions League he has played four times and scored once against Paris Saint-Germain.
McKennie was born in Fort Lewis Washington but moved to Germany when he was six because his father, who was an officer in the United States Air Force, was stationed there. He played for FC Phönix Otterbach before returning to the US after three years and joining FC Dallas’ youth setup before returning to Germany with Schalke 04.
McKennie would go on to play 91 times for Die Königsblauen, scoring five times and creating seven assists. This form earned him a move to Italy with Juventus.
Weston McKennie is being linked with a transfer to Spurs
For the Old Lady, McKennie has now made 88 appearances, finding the back of the net 11 times with four assists. However, according to the reports in Italy, his time with Juve could be coming to an end.
Juventus are currently struggling in Serie A and questions are being raised over the future of their manager Massimiliano Allegri. Whether McKennie stays with the side could hinge on whether Allegri stays or not.
There is not much time until the World Cup starts next month so McKennie does have a race against time to impress in a Juventus shirt. However, if he has an impressive tournament with the USMNT then the club may want to reconsider their stance on him. McKennie played 34 times for his country and has nine goals and four assists.
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Would McKennie be a good fit for Spurs?
McKennie is predominantly a central midfielder but he can play on the right or in a defensive role. So at Tottenham, he would be competing with the likes of Rodrigo Bentancur and Pierre-Emile Højbjerg for a starting spot.
Spurs’ Antonio Conte manager was previously at Juventus and has raided his former club with the signings of Bentancur and Dejan Kulusevski, so the Italian knows how to embed players from Serie A into his Premier League side.
The north London club are also doing very well this season and are third in the league with just one defeat so far. This loss came against the current leader Arsenal, and they are also top of their group in the Champions League.
Conte is certainly getting rid of the ‘Spursy’ tag the club have been known by due to their ability to not quite get over the line when it comes to competing at the latter stages of competitions. They have not won a trophy since the League Cup in 2008 and, with the squad, they are building it might not be long before they end this drought.
McKennie would be a good fit for Conte’s side, improving their strength in depth which they need to compete with the likes of Manchester City, and he would bring the experience of playing in the Bundesliga and Serie A.