Claudio Marchisio: The tireless Italian international would be ideal for Chelsea’s title charge

Juventus’ Claudio Marchisio has never been short of admirers in England, with Manchester United heavily linked with a move for the central midfielder over the past summer and Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho known to be keen on acquiring his services.

According to The Express, nouveau-riche Ligue 1 giants Monaco have now joined the sweepstakes for the 27-year-old, as former Bianconeri boss Claudio Ranieri is understood to have an enduring fondness for his former charge in Turin. So with the race for the Italy international continuing to heat up, should the Stamford Bridge outfit put an offer on the table in an effort to entice him into a west London switch?

A product of the Juventus youth academy and Turin native, Marchisio has only ever known life with the Old Lady during his career, save for a solitary loan spell at Empoli during the 2007-08 season.

An all-action performer renowned for his energetic running and tenacious style of play, he once drew comparisons with Bianconeri legend and World Cup-winner Marco Tardelli from ex-Milan forward Stefano Borgonovo.

Marchisio has registered a Squawka Performance Score of 105 through five Serie A appearances this term after missing the opening month with a knee injury, returning to action on 22 September in a 2-1 win over Hellas Verona.

The Italian has been quite solid in distribution since returning to the pitch, completing 88% of his attempted passes, including 14 of 16 long balls, creating seven chances in the process.

His key passes have come from a variety of areas wide and central in a testament to his versatility, highlighting his trademark mobility and stamina.

Marchisio’s Action Areas map from Juventus’ 4-2 loss to Fiorentina further demonstrates his ability to cover vast amounts of ground throughout a match, as he spent a significant amount of time in each the offensive and defensive thirds, both in the middle of the park and out on the flanks.

The 27-year-old has done well in the tackle thus far, successfully taking the ball off of opponents’ feet 11 times out of 16 attempts, but has been somewhat of a liability in terms of discipline with a rather astounding 13 fouls committed in domestic play.

Further, his average of two defensive actions per game has been slightly disappointing in the young season, his seven total interceptions not good enough to crack even the top 100 in Serie A in this category.

It bears reiterating that Marchisio did miss a significant amount of time to start the campaign and may yet need more minutes to assume top form, though in many statistical categories his current figures are in line with those posted over his 29 appearances in 2012-13, in particular his wastefulness in possession that has seen him succeed in only 23 of 64 take ons since August 2012.

One aspect of his game that has not resurfaced, however, is his finishing. Marchisio bagged six goals last term and has been a consistent scorer from midfield throughout his senior career with Juventus, but is yet to hit the back of the net for boss Antonio Conte through week eight in the Italian top flight.

With respect to Chelsea, Marchisio’s tireless running and willingness to exert himself for the good of the team would certainly be welcome qualities as Mourinho is known to value industry, whilst his passing proficiency would likely be sufficient for the level of play the Blues look to maintain. Additionally, the Italian’s physicality appears to make him suitable for the Premier League.

Yet tactically, it is hard to see where he would fit into the Portuguese’s 4-2-3-1 set up. Marchisio has spent the past few seasons plying his trade centrally in a 3-5-2 formation at Juventus with cover in every direction, and as he is both somewhat wasteful in possession and not particularly adept at breaking up opposition moves considering his take on and interception figures, seeing him in either a holding midfield role or as part of an attack-supporting trident is difficult.

Additionally, considering the wealth of talent Chelsea have in their ranks at the centre of the park as well, a deal to bring Marchisio to Stamford Bridge may not be the best choice when a more specialised player could be attained to bolster Mourinho’s options in either section of his midfield.

And given that the Italian only in August told Corriere dello Sport he’d “love to be the Francesco Totti of Juventus”, it remains to be seen whether he would even agree to a move away from the side he has supported since his childhood in the first place.

All things considered, it seems that Chelsea would do well to look elsewhere as they look to build a squad capable of contending for the Premier League crown and Champions League title simultaneously, what with Marchisio’s somewhat incompatible skill set and strong ties to his hometown club.