Juventus will be looking to make it seven wins from eight as they close out the 2025 calendar year against Pisa on Saturday, and they’ll be counting on Manuel Locatelli to deliver the goods and win the midfield battle against the newly-promoted side that has only one Serie A win to its record so far this season.
Born in Lecco, Italy, Locatelli spent his formative years at Atalanta before making the move to AC Milan in 2009, where he progressed through the ranks before eventually signing a professional
contract in March 2015. Whilst Locatelli managed to carve out a spot in the first-team squad and make 63 appearances for the Rossoneri, he wasn’t quite able to shake off competition from veterans Riccardo Montolivo and Lucas Biglia and become a starter in the middle of the pitch. It’s why, in the summer of 2018, after adding Tiémoué Bakayoko on loan, Milan suggested that Locatelli join a lower-tier Serie A side on loan, without a buyout option.
Instead of hanging around as a loan soldier, Locatelli instead decided to submit a transfer request and eventually earn a move to Sassuolo on loan with an obligation to buy for €10 million plus €2 million in bonuses. Locatelli emerged as one of the finest midfielders in Serie A and proved indispensable for the Neroverdi, scoring seven goals and 11 assists in 99 appearances and eventually breaking into the Italian national team during the pandemic.
After a momentous summer that saw him lead Italy to their first European championship in 53 years and earn the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, Locatelli made the move to Juventus on Aug. 18, 2021, with La Vecchia Signora signing him on an initial two-year loan followed by an obligatory purchase of €25 million payable over three years plus €12.5 million in potential add-ons.
Linking up with Massimiliano Allegri, who called him up to train with Milan’s senior side in 2013 when he was just 15 years old, Locatelli quickly solidified a starting spot in midfield. He racked up three goals and five assists in 43 appearances as Juve went trophyless for the first time in 11 years, before playing 49 and 40 times in the following two years. After back-to-back trophyless campaigns, Locatelli proved essential in leading Juve to the Coppa Italia title and a top-three finish in 2024, prompting new manager Thiago Motta to bequeath him with the captain’s armband.
Plenty of things have changed over the past 18 months, with Motta, Igor Tudor, and now Luciano Spalletti overseeing Juve’s progress from the touchline, but one thing has stayed the same: Locatelli wearing the armband. It isn’t hard to see why such a diverse range of managers have all preferred the veteran midfielder as their leader, their conduit between themselves and the team.
Operating as the anchor in the double pivot alongside a more attack-minded player like Khéphren Thuram or Fabio Miretti, Locatelli has stood out thanks to his intelligent decision-making, superb vision, and inspiring defensive work-rate. Locatelli is tasked with controlling the tempo and distributing the ball across the pitch with both quick, short passes as well as instigating counter-attacks with his flawless through balls and lofted passes.
He’s the guy that Juve players look towards whenever they’re trying to get out of pressure and work the ball to the final third, capable of storming forward whilst keeping the ball under his control. Similarly to other all-action players like Morten Hjulmand, Jason Shokalook and Bradley Barcola, Locatelli blends his smooth operational skills in possession with a fearlessness out of possession, constantly looking to roam around the pitch and get stuck in. He’s going to make his presence felt and use his physicality and positional awareness to his advantage in order to win the ball, but he also isn’t going to be outright reckless and earn unwanted attention from the referee.
Locatelli may not steal the show with his red-hot goalscoring form or his flashy individual highlights, but he has become one of the first names on the Juve team sheet thanks to his balanced skillset, be that offering a passing outlet to his teammates, breaking the lines with his sublimely weighted passes, or stepping off the line and intercepting the danger. And whilst he has only scored just 7 goals and 15 assists in 204 appearances for Juve, when he does score, it is typically spectacular.
“For me, Locatelli is currently Juventus’ best midfielder, largely because the others have been very inconsistent. Under Spalletti, he plays more as a positional regista, responsible for controlling the flow of the game through tempo management,” stated Khaled Al Nouss, a Juventus fan based in Doha, Qatar. “The role is similar to how Spalletti used Stanislav Lobotka at Napoli, but with more physicality and less press resistance. However, Locatelli’s main limitation remains high-tempo transitions.”
“Under Tudor, Locatelli operated at the base of a very physical midfield, shielding the back three with no build-up responsibility; his role was largely defensive, which naturally limited his influence in attacking phases. In my opinion, part of the fanbase views him as limited because Juventus lack a true defensive midfielder to cover that role — I don’t think he is a natural defensive midfielder. So far, he has clearly improved under Spalletti, showing greater tactical responsibility and a wider range of duties. Ultimately, Juventus need a profile like Atalanta’s Éderson, a midfielder capable of covering ground, winning duels, & supporting both Locatelli and Thuram to balance the midfield.”
If Locatelli is feeling like a fish out of water in his defensive midfielder, he certainly isn’t showing it. Locatelli has proven to be Juve’s passing orchestrator, leading the team in accurate passes per 90 (63.1) and accurate long balls per 90 (5.1) in Serie A — nearly double that of second-placed Pierre Kalulu — and sitting third for key passes per 90 (1.1). But he’s also holding up his end of the bargain in the defensive front, leading the team in tackles (2.6) and interceptions (1.6) and sitting third for clearances (2.1).
Locatelli has proven integral for a Juve side that sits fifth in the Serie A table, four points behind fourth-placed Roma, and 17th in the UEFA Champions League, and that will be meeting Atalanta in the Coppa Italia quarterfinal. But whilst Juve have enjoyed a promising start to life under Spalletti, they haven’t managed a signature win against one of Italy’s top sides (apart from last week’s 1-0 win at 10-man Bologna). They’ll be counting on Locatelli to help them change that and secure their first win against Roma in two years.
As he approaches his 28th birthday, Manuel Locatelli has proven that, similarly to Locatelli’s sharp, salty Pecorino Romano made from 100% sheep’s milk, he’s only getting better with age. It remains to be seen whether or not Locatelli will beat out a crowded midfield selection of Sandro Tonali and Nicolò Barella and start for Italy in March’s World Cup knockout playoffs, but one thing’s for sure: having failed to impress him at AC Milan, Locatelli has the opportunity to give Gennaro Gattuso some major food for thought with a world-class display on Saturday.
