The midfielder has transformed from unwanted to irreplaceable for the Serie A title contenders after a string of outstanding games.
How much can change in a few of months. It has been a career-altering journey for Weston McKennie, whose comeback at Juventus has been the tale of the U.S. men’s national team this season, going from social media punching bag to bonafide Serie A hero.
Now there are no fat jokes. With the exception of a few resentful supporters in England who are deaf from their own anguish, there is no longer any brutality or hate. No, anyone with a clue can’t deny McKennie’s ascent. McKennie is one of the key players at one of the biggest teams in the world all of a sudden, albeit rather unexpectedly.
He is now an important member of Juventus and has more than earned the right to be back in Massimiliano Allegri’s good graces. He grabbed hold of that with both hands; it wasn’t delivered to him. How did McKennie get here, though? How did he use all of Leeds’ animosity to fuel his success at Juventus?
Nobody cheered McKennie’s last moments wearing a Leeds shirt. Not even near. As the midfield player’s six-month loan was about to expire and everyone involved was ready to move on, fans instead serenaded him with three words: “You fat b*stard!”
The English supporters quickly became jaded and began to take a standard shot at McKennie. However, the truth is that the American was never given the opportunity to perform as he was contracted to perform and to play as he was contracted to play.
McKennie was supposed to play under Jesse Marsch in a system that ranked him higher than Tyler Adams, according to Leeds’ original plan. Marsch was let go practically right away. Adams suffered injuries nearly instantly. Consequently, McKennie was miscast as a No. 6 by multiple managers who were training for their positions on a weekly basis.
Leeds ultimately suffered relegation. McKennie? Clamped out. He was an easy person to point the finger at, a player who was leaving the team quickly and would not be around for the season’s aftermath. Even when he left Leeds in the rearview mirror, the fat jokes persisted on social media throughout the summer.
This was a new for McKennie. His reputation had plummeted following the Leeds fiasco. He also had some choices to make when he returned to Juventus.
McKennie received some counsel from Allegri when he returned to Juventus.
“How have I changed McKennie? “I didn’t change him,” said the Bianconeri owner. “I just told him during the summer that he had a great chance of staying at Juventus as long as he started running on July 15 and stopped on May 26.”
Though Allegri may have a point, that’s a rather narrow view of the situation. Since joining Juventus for Serie A season, McKennie’s enthusiasm and effort have been crucial to the team’s success. The American has brought a lot of life to the midfield.
McKennie has played excellent defense, finishing in the top percentile of Serie A for both tackles and clearances. However, to simply characterize him as a defensive presence would be to undervalue a player who has greatly refined his offensive style.