The American midfielder has found a new position at Juve, and he's performing at a level that might make it a long-term solution
In reality, Weston McKennie is not a left-back, and, barring an unforeseen catastrophe of epic proportions, he probably won't ever play there for the U.S. men's national team in a big game. Fulham star Antonee Robinson has that spot locked down and multiple understudies are fighting to be his backup. As things stand, McKennie is, as he has always been, a midfielder when he wears a USMNT shirt.
Juventus, though, have once again started playing McKennie as a fullback, and it's easy to see why they have fallen into this situation once again. The big reason? McKennie is actually very good in that spot.
Since making the switch to that spot in mid-December, McKennie has quickly made it his own. He's started five matches as Juventus' left-back, taking the qualities that make him such a dynamic midfielder and reapplying them to this new spot out wide. McKennie's positional instincts as a midfielder aren't harming his ability to play as a fullback; in fact, they're why he's been so effective out there to begin with.
As McKennie continues on this new positional journey, a journey that has seemed endless with Juventus in recent years, he's finding a way to make it work at left-back in a way that doesn't just help Juve but could help the USMNT down the line.
GettyBack from the brink… again
This should sound familiar: To start this Serie A season, McKennie was out on the fringes at Juventus.
It was a similar situation heading onto the 2023-24 campaign. He arrived at Juve as a total outsider. His locker and parking space were moved. Transfer rumors swirled amid reports that Juve couldn't find a use for him. He began the season as a backup wingback, filling in only after Tim Weah, his fellow USMNT star, was sidelined. But McKennie seized the opportunity, not only reclaiming his place in the squad but also earning his way back into his preferred midfield role.
Then, to open this 2024-25 season, history repeated itself. He was linked with an exit all over again as new manager Thiago Motta reportedly didn't see him as a preferred option. McKennie opted to stay anyway, choosing to fight for a spot once again.
“During my career, even as a child, many people didn’t believe in me," he told Calcio Mercato. "Even when I started my career here at Juventus, they told me that Juve was too big for me and that I would never play. I like this because I do everything I can to change people’s minds”.
It didn't take him long to win that fight by late September, McKennie was right back in the Juve XI. There has been rotation, of course, given the options in the Juve midfield, but McKennie has still found a way to keep a place under Motta. It's that left-back position.
It started out of necessity. McKennie was tossed into the spot due to a December injury crisis that left the squad without a designated left-back after Andrea Cambiaso went down. After just a few weeks, though, it feels like McKennie has found a way to make it his own.
AdvertisementGettyThe fullback position
Soccer, ultimately, is a numbers game, and Juventus have numbers in the midfield. McKennie, Khephren Thuram, Manuel Locatelli, Teun Koopmeiners, Douglas Luiz, Nicolo Fagioli – they can't all play. So, to get one more member of that group onto the field, Motta got creative.
The coach ultimately looked at McKennie and believed he could play a part as a fullback, and it's easy to see why. The position has changed massively in recent years. For decades, there was a certain idea of what a fullback could and should be. Nowadays, those definitions are more up for interpretation. Trent Alexander-Arnold is a wide playmaker. Manchester City use Josko Gvardiol, Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanju as, essentially, bonus center backs.
McKennie's USMNT teammate Robinson is the modern definition of an old-school fullback, one who goes from endline to endline, while his other USMNT teammate, Sergino Dest is something different entirely. The PSV star cuts in to become, essentially, another attacking midfielder.
There's value in all of those approaches. The fullback position, in many ways, has shifted and been redefined. It's now a position that requires different skill sets for each team and, at the moment, Motta believes McKennie's skillset makes him an asset out wide.
Getty Images'Weston can do anything'
Motta sees one thing in abundance when he looks at McKennie: flexibility.
Throughout his career, McKennie has started matches in just about every position other than goalkeeper. Just this season alone, McKennie has been used as a central midfielder, a false nine, and, now, as a left-back. There's a reason for that, and it's because McKennie's skillset translated to all of these different spots on the field.
"It doesn’t change anything; the important thing is to play," McKennie told of his position change. "I could even play in goal! Last year with [Massimiliano] Allegri, I started as a right-back or as a midfielder. The key is to help the team. It’s easy for me to help because I have played in all positions during my career.”
McKennie is both athletic enough to do a job anywhere and intelligent enough to understand what that job is. It's why Motta has developed so much respect for him as a player.
“Weston McKennie is not just right now, but also over the years, proving that he can do anything,” Motta said after Juventus' 2-2 draw with Fiorentina to close the 2024 calendar year. “So today he starts as a left-back, but with the freedom to roam and play other positions too."
That's what McKennie brings to the left-back spot: an ability to roam, and that ability is what makes this all work.
GettyHow it works
A quick glance at McKennie's scouting report reveals exactly what he brings to the fullback position.
Per FBRef, among midfielders in the top five leagues, McKennie is in the 97th percentile in progressive passes received. He's in the 80th percentile in touches. He's in the 96th percentile in assists, too. So, what does this all mean? What do these numbers show? Well, they show a player that can get forward, wherever he is on the field, and, ultimately, create danger in the opponent's half.
That's what McKennie brings to the fullback position. His defending is certainly good for a midfielder, but not necessarily great by fullback standards. There are wingers out there that, on an elite level, can torch him defensively. McKennie isn't out there for that, though; he's there to help drive Juve forward. For a team like Juventus, who currently lead Serie A in possession stats, that's so, so valuable.
So, too, are his goals. McKennie has proven plenty of times how dangerous he is in the final third, particularly on set pieces. He recently scored against Monza on one of those set pieces, netting his second goal of the season. McKennie will be dangerous in every dead ball situation, and he can create some of his own dangerous moments, too, from throw-ins.
McKennie's best game undoubtedly came against Monza, and not just because of that goal. In addition to his finish, he completed 90 percent of his passes, had six passes into the final third, and had several strong defensive moments. Against Cagliari, he completed 93 percent of his passes and created four chances. The passing percentage was at 92 percent against Fiorentina and 94 percent against Torino, too.
His toughest game was certainly the Supercoppa Italiana loss to AC Milan, where he matched up with fellow American star Christian Pulisic. Even in that game, though, McKennie did have one moment of magic when he flicked the ball up and over his USMNT teammate Pulisic, showing what he can do when he does have the ball at his feet.
Overall, McKennie plays the position in a certain way. He's athletic and physical enough to handle most Serie A wingers, but that's just a bonus. McKennie's real value comes from his ability to step forward and impact the game higher up the field, where the numbers show he makes his biggest impact on this Juventus team.