Andrea Radrizzani once claimed that Victor Orta advised signing one of Europe’s finest wingers at Leeds United, and on Saturday, he received the Euro 2024 man of the match award.
Euro 2024 is officially fully underway, with four matches played following Germany’s hammering of Scotland on Friday night. Switzerland defeated a possible dark horse, Hungary.
On Saturday afternoon, Spain crushed Croatia with a stunning performance that stunned the older Croatian team. But it was Italy’s performance in the evening that piqued the greatest interest.
Albania was supposed to be thoroughly thrashed by holders Italy, but before the clock had even reached 30 seconds, they found themselves in the lead. Sylvinho’s side outperformed expectations.
Italy swiftly responded with goals from Alessandro Bastoni and Nicolo Barella, although Albania had numerous opportunities to equalise. Including in the final five minutes to equalize the score at 2-2.
Federico Chiesa earns the man of the match award for Italy.
But Italy won, and there were several standout moments, including Barella’s spectacular goal from the edge of the box. Federico Chiesa of Juventus played excellent on the right wing for Italy.
Despite not scoring or assisting, the £153k-a-week player was named official man of the match for his performance. But he came close, slamming a left-footed effort inches beyond the top corner Friday night.
A player who, curiously, could have worn Leeds’ white shirt. That is according to former owner Andrea Radrizzani, who stated in 2023 that Victor Orta approached him about signing Chiesa.
Victor Orta advised that Leeds sign Chiesa while at Elland Road.
Given how highly regarded the wide player is, a move for him is quite unlikely. Previous estimates have even put him at a whopping £89 million, with Liverpool reported to be long-time admirers of Chiesa.
Of course, a move to Elland Road never materialized, and Chiesa has since established himself in Italy. It is unclear when Orta believed Chiesa was a legitimate target for the club and could be moved to Yorkshire.
Already at 26, he has 48 caps for Italy and nearly 300 club outings. In 284 games for Fiorentina and Juventus, he scored 66 goals and assisted 48 times. A relocation to Leeds was always considered outlandish.
