Following a strong season in Ligue 1 where he was able to shine in flexible roles, United States men's national team mainstay Tim Weah is set to move to Juventus on a €12 million transfer while signing a contract through 2028. A winger who has played wing back, central attacking midfield, and even left back in a pinch, Weah is the type of player that teams covet so it makes sense why Juventus have made a move for the Lille man. He has enough speed to function in attacking roles while also displaying enough positional awareness to help out in defensive roles.
In a season where Juventus are trimming their books after missing out on Champions League due to points deductions, being able to replace three players with one is quite an appealing proposition and Weah is someone who can do that. With the USMNT he is strictly a winger and shined in winning the Concacaf Nations League along with Christian Pulisic and Folarin Balogun. That doesn't mean that he can't shift around as Paulo Fonseca has helped round out the 23-year-old's game in France.
Despite not contributing much in goals or assists for Lille, with only six goals and six assists over three seasons as a starter for the club, Weah has always been someone who helped the team tick in other ways. You don't have to look far for a comparable player at Juventus with Juan Cuadrado being a winger turned wing back that has worked quite well. He's 35 though, and the club is clearly looking to the future with the Colombian departing as a free agent. Cuadrado, like Weah, even takes up more attacking positions when on international play, so it's easy to understand how Juventus see the American as potentially filling that hole.
As a former Roma manager, Fonseca probably has a good grasp of what's needed for a player to succeed in the Serie A style and it's not surprising that after coaching Weah at Lille, the growth shows is starting to show -- as well as the growth that comes from playing more games at the top level. Moving around the pitch can be frustrating for an attacker, but due to the moves, Weah has developed excellent vision. Able to dribble to create his own space, play wonderful directional headers to keep play going, and uncork a ferocious shot to test a keeper, Weah's mind is perfectly in sync with his body which is valued at Juventus.
Even with the points deduction, Juventus would have qualified for the Europa League next season if their players were able to take small chances and make the right decisions with the ball. They finished in seventh place with 62 points, only two behind Atalanta in fifth. Some of their issues were due to Paul Pogba and Federico Chiesa being injured for large portions of the season but with Serie A getting more competitive by the day, every moment on the pitch matters. Gone are the days where Juventus could pass the ball around and win the league without breaking a sweat and identifying unorthodox additions like Weah might show that they're beginning to recognize that.
In Cuadrado and even Filip Kostic Juventus have targeted progressive fullbacks to spread the pitch while wingers like Chiesa cut inside to keep things in check. Moving strong attackers into defense to help possession has been a growing trend that worked with Alphonso Davies and Eduardo Camavinga and while Weah isn't at their level yet, becoming a key player at Juventus could help bring him closer.
There's still the question of what does Weston McKennie's future hold at the club but if he is to stay, Weah would immediately have a familiar face at Juventus, not that he needs one considering that his father George Weah was a key figure for AC Milan. Italy can be a paradise for wide players who are strong on the ball and going to Juventus is a great place for Weah to take the next step in his career.
