Roy Keane Surprised Federico Chiesa Is Still a Liverpool Player
Roy Keane could hardly hide his surprise after learning that Federico Chiesa is still part of Liverpool’s squad following the close of the summer transfer window.
Liverpool saw several familiar faces leave Anfield during the summer, with Mohamed Salah, Andy Robertson and Ibrahima Konate all moving on after their contracts expired. Curtis Jones also completed a £30 million move to Inter Milan, while other members of the squad secured loan moves for the 2026/27 season.
Chiesa was among the players heavily linked with an exit, particularly with a possible return to Italy. However, despite the speculation surrounding his future and his limited involvement during his first two seasons at Anfield, the Italian forward remains a Liverpool player under manager Andoni Iraola.
During a recent episode of Stick to Football, Jamie Carragher suggested that both Chiesa and Wataru Endo may struggle to feature regularly for Liverpool this season. Neither player appeared in the Reds’ opening two Premier League matches.
When Carragher mentioned Chiesa, Keane immediately interrupted with a sarcastic question, asking whether the 28-year-old was still at the club. Carragher confirmed that the Italian international had indeed remained at Anfield.
However, there is a reason behind Chiesa’s absence from Liverpool’s recent matches. The forward picked up a minor injury during a pre-season game against Como and has been recovering ever since.
Iraola recently provided an update, revealing that Chiesa is expected to return to training during the international break later in September. This means he could miss several more matches before becoming available for selection again.
Even after recovering, though, Chiesa could face another difficult battle for regular playing time. Liverpool’s expensive signing of Bradley Barcola has further increased the competition for places in the attacking positions, leaving Chiesa with plenty of rivals for a spot in the starting lineup.
Last season, the Italian featured in 26 Premier League matches but started only once, against Wolves in December. That statistic highlighted just how limited his role was within the team.
With even more competition now available in Liverpool’s attack, Chiesa may once again find regular starts difficult to come by during the 2026/27 campaign. Nevertheless, he will hope to make an impact whenever he gets the opportunity and prove to Keane and his other critics that he still has plenty to offer Liverpool.
