Allegri converts Chiesa into a striker in bid to address lack of goals

Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri adapted Federico Chiesa into a striker for the coming campaign in a bid to harness his potential in front of goal.

The Italy international follows in the footsteps of his father Enrico, who played as a forward and won silverware with Sampdoria, Parma, and Fiorentina before retiring in 2010.

The younger Chiesa's physical resemblance with his father is impressive and Allegri will hope that he can shape the 25-year-old into a similar goalscoring mould.

Chiesa has never lacked confidence going forward, but the defensive responsibilities his role entailed saw him net just twice in the league in his first season since joining Juve permanently from Fiorentina last summer.

However, the arrival of another winger in the form of USA international Timothy Weah has given Allegri the depth to experiment with adapting Chiesa into an out-and-out striker.

After a complicated year that saw him return to action in November after ten months on the sidelines with a knee injury, Chiesa is aiming for a relaunch that will allow him to perform to his full potential at the Allianz Stadium.

In his debut outing in his new role, Chiesa played as a second striker behind Moise Kean in a 3-5-2 formation as his side twice came from behind to draw level with AC Milan in a pre-season friendly before triumphing on penalties.

Chiesa's positional flexibility will be an additional benefit should Allegri opt for the 4-3-3 that he utilised in the early portion of last season as Juve slumped to a disappointing seventh, unable to keep pace with a surging Napoli in Serie A.

Speaking following the pre-season friendly with Milan, Allegri spoke with enthusiasm about Chiesa's performance.

'Chiesa presented himself well,' The Juve boss told