Juventus still keeping an eye on Chelsea left back Emerson — report

Chelsea managed to sort the future of one excess full back by sending Davide Zappacosta on loan to Genoa last week. (He even scored a goal on his debut!) Now we have to do the same on the opposite flank as well, where the lesser spotted Emerson looks to be the odd man out: Marcos Alonso has played every minute so far while we wait for Ben Chilwell to get fit.

As with Zappacosta, Emerson’s most likely to find a home back in Serie A, though it’s entirely unclear where exactly that might be. Inter Milan and Juventus have been frequently linked, but nothing concrete has emerged just yet.

And that’s true for the latest rumor as well, with Gianluca Di Marzio reporting that Juventus are still keeping tabs on the 26-year-old but would need a couple things to happen before they’d actually make a move.

Juventus have three left backs in the squad at the moment. Alex Sandro, once (well, twice thrice more times than we care to count) heavily linked with Chelsea, is currently out of contention due to a thigh injury. But new head coach Andre Pirlo does not rate the current backup, Mattia De Sciglio to such an extent that he opted to play 21-year-old Gianluca Frabotta over the weekend instead, in what was just his second ever appearance for the club. Frabotta spent last season at Juventus B, who are in the third division. (Pirlo’s choices worked, in fairness, as they beat Claudio Ranieri’s Sampdoria, 3-0.)

According to Di Marzio, should De Sciglio end up leaving Juventus before the transfer window closes in a couple weeks, then Emerson would become a target once again. As is customary these days, Juve would presumably look for a loan with an option to buy — just like the deal they’re getting on Álvaro Morata, who’s heading back to Turin once Atlético Madrid complete the signing of Luis Suárez from Barcelona. Like Morata, Emerson will be looking for redemption wherever he lands.