Why Roberto Pereyra Is the Player Who Can Breathe Life into Juventus' Attack
Since the end of last season, Juventus fans have been baying for an attacking midfielder. Ever since Massimiliano Allegri switched from a 3-5-2 to a 4-3-1-2 in the middle of last season, they have demanded an import to fill the trequartista position.
This summer, such a deal came close. Bayern Munich's Mario Gotze linked himself to the team when he praised the Bianconeri and told Goal.com that he might do well playing abroad. A protracted saga over Julian Draxler saw the German starlet move from Schalke to Wolfsburg, much to Juve's anger. In August, the Metro connected Juve to a battle with Liverpool over Borussia Dortmund's Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
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None of these moves materialized—and that's probably a good thing. That's because if they had done so, they might have been spending money for something they already had.
Indeed, Juventus have a player that can handle the trequartista role with aplomb—a player that, once he returns from injury, could breathe life into an attack that often looks too stagnant. That player is Roberto Pereyra.
Acquired two summers ago from Udinese, Pereyra has impressed in Juve stripes. He played in 35 games a year ago, starting 27, but not all of them came in the middle. As the season began and Allegri kept Antonio Conte's 3-5-2 in place, Pereyra turned into depth behind Stephan Lichtsteiner, covering the right wing-back position when the Swiss needed a break.
When Allegri moved to four in the back in late October, Pereyra wasn't an automatic in the lineup. With four outstanding midfielders in Andrea Pirlo, Arturo Vidal, Paul Pogba and Claudio Marchisio, the Juve head coach had little choice but to line up the four of them together—especially in big games.
Pereyra was often utilized as a mid-game change of pace, particularly in the Champions League. When he did start, he was often used as a Swiss Army knife, plugging in around the midfield whenever one of the Big Four needed rest.
His playing time has been streaky this season. He's only appeared in the Champions League once, as a sub against Borussia Monchengladbach. He's been utilized more in the league, appearing in seven of nine matches before limping out of Juve's 2-0 victory over Atalanta with a leg injury.
His numbers from those games show just how much Juventus misses his presence. According to WhoScored.com, Pereyra has completed 89.9 percent of his passes and averaging 2.9 key passes per game. Those numbers are marked improvements over last season—and they can only get better now that Paul Pogba has regained much of his form and Sami Khedira and Marchisio are healthy.
An attack that is more in sync will help as well. Mario Mandzukic has scored in consecutive games, a sign that the Croatian could be finding his feet. Alvaro Morata's ability to move with the ball could be deadly when combined with Pereyra's, and a stronger, more confident Paulo Dybala has made everyone up front better as the year has gone on.
If Pereyra can effectively link the midfield with the forwards, it would free up Dybala from that responsibility and get him aimed at the goal full time. It would also allow Pogba to play more of his own game as a box-to-box midfielder rather than as a primary creator in midfield.
Perhaps even more important than any statistics, though, are his abilities with the ball at his feet. There aren't a lot of players at Allergi's disposal who can dribble the way Pereyra can. This is especially important when teams try to press the Bianconeri, which is happening more and more lately.
Sunday's game against Palermo is a good example. The Rosaneri began the game in a high press, keeping possession early and forcing Juve into errant passes. Pereyra is the kind of player who becomes valuable in this situation. His ability to dribble past a man in his face can start breakouts where attempts to pass out of the press may fail.
This was readily apparent last season during the Champions League round of 16 against Borussia Dortmund.
Introduced after Pirlo limped off with a muscle injury midway through the first half of the first leg, Pereyra's impact was felt immediately. The Bianconeri looked much more dangerous with his ability to slide past opposing pressers, and as a starter in the second leg, he helped to spearhead a massive 3-0 away win.
Having played that way against Jurgen Klopp's Dortmund—one of the most advanced press games ever seen—it's easy to see him being a key factor when opponents employ similar tactics.
Pereyra's accuracy this year has been exceptional. If he continues at that clip after his return from his leg injury, he'll be instrumental as the bridge between the midfielders and the strikers.
If he is successful, he could inject a dangerous element into Juve's attack—and allow Juve to spend their money elsewhere in the coming transfer windows.
