8 players Juventus needs to sell during the summer transfer window
By John Vaccaro
Blaise Matuidi
While we’re on the subject of ageing midfielders that Juventus needs to move on from, let’s talk about Blaise Matuidi.
While Matuidi hasn’t declined nearly as badly as Khedira, he is still definitely starting to show some signs of his age and that has been part of his problem in Maurizio Sarri’s system. He plays too slowly in the midfield and doesn’t really offer any kind of forward bursting runs from the midfield.
However, the bigger problem for Matuidi right now is his fit at Juventus. Even though we haven’t really seen it on display throughout the year, the goal for Maurizio Sarri’s Juventus is for them to play a faster, more free-flowing, attack-oriented style of play. That is absolutely not something Blaise Matuidi is suited for.
He has a clunky first touch that makes it difficult for him to quickly distribute the ball or drive forward with it. He also has never been the most talented passer available to Juve. On top of all of that, his style of play mostly revolves around his defensive effort, which won’t have much value for a Juve team who is going to try to beat opponents by overwhelming them with a strong attack.