:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/27428859/181747904.0.jpg)
Emanuele Giaccherini will be granted his wish to play in central midfield against Kidderminster, with Gus Poyet urging him to take the chance to impress.
Since his arrival in the summer, the Italian has been used mainly in a wide position, but it's a role at the very heart of the side that he prefers. Poyet explained:
He's a special case. He prefers to play as one of two central midfielders because he played there all the time in Italy. Against Kidderminster, he's going to have that chance.
I like him and I want him here. He's always positive, whether he's playing or not playing.
Regular contributors to our comments section will know this is a drum I've been beating for a fair while now. He is a nice player with the ball at his feet in wide positions, but he doesn't have anywhere near enough without it. It's not a criticism of him, it's just not something he has in his locker.
It's a tough job endlessly tracking marauding full backs and protecting a full back. The bulk of the reason why Poyet uses Fabio Borini on the left rather than down the middle is because he is so good at the dirty work.
Giaccherini was customarily used as one of the two players just ahead of Pirlo in the midfield at Juventus. Yeah, he wasn't a guaranteed starter, but it's still some team to get into. Our own central midfield isn't packed full of pedigree at the moment, so why not see if he can add a fresh dimension here?
Of course, I'm not too sure how much we could really learn about him playing against non-league opposition, but I guess it can't hurt.
