Juventus will tackle their Champions League round of 16 tie against Celtic and will do so with an additional and very useful weapon: Kwadwo Asamoah.
The Ghanaian has been very important in Antonio’s Conte’s system and the Italian’s repositioning of the player as a wide midfielder has proven one of Juventus’ great strengths.
In effect with Stephan Lichtsteiner’s marauding runs down the right flank, Asamoah offers similar offensive thrust down the left and thus symmetrical width to the team.
This particular asset of width will be an important weapon given how their Champions League opponents might be expected to set up. The Scottish club would probably play deep, narrow, and exploit spaces left behind by Juventus. After all, Conte sets up his team to press high and the three-man backline would present some spaces for Celtic to exploit on the counter-attack.
Offensively, against a packed defense, this is where the width offered by Asamoah counts. Just like Lichtsteiner, Asamoah often looks to run beyond the opposition backline and offer an additional target for Andrea Pirlo to hit.
The Ghanaian is also a powerful player and will be able to take part of what will probably be a physical battle with the Scottish backline. More specifically and other than his running, Asamoah’s crossing will be a veritable weapon for the Bianconeri, especially considering the recent good form of Alessandro Matri who could offer a viable aerial threat.
Defensively speaking, Asamoah is always mindful to cover and track back and so will be a tough client to catch off-guard. He is a very good tackler, a great athlete, and a tireless runner that will cover his entire left flank. The most important thing is that Asamoah will offer Conte ‘s team a much-needed balance. In terms of the left-sided options, Asamoah is the best one Conte has. He is a tactically very competent, technically adept, and athletically reliable player that is a coach’s dream.
Celtic will have their hands full with Asamoah but of course it is impossible to certify that the Ghanaian will be the difference maker. What is for sure however is that he offers this Juventus team an extra weapon and especially much-needed extra energy and forward thrust to a team that had looked a bit leggy since returning from winter break.
