“I am a midfielder, not a forward,” the Dutchman, who paid for his versatility in his first year in black and white, told Gazzetta. Now, however, there is a different technical approach and dialogue.
Seventy-three minutes in two games in the USA are a sign, but 100% is still to be reached. Teun Koopmeiners, after the 4-1 against Wydad that sent him and Juve to the Club World Cup round of 16, celebrated with a `robotic muscle` emoji, but RoboKoop is still just a promise at the moment. “This tournament is a big opportunity for me,” he told Gazzetta with the confidence of someone who knows he can (and must) prove his worth. The Koop-recovery operation is one of the missions Tudor has on his list of issues to solve, and if he succeeds, he can add the Dutchman`s name to the list of revitalized players. The opportunity is tempting: Teun can become a real new signing for Juve. A year later, it`s true, but looking towards next season, there is no Juve without Koopmeiners, and optimism is not lacking overseas: “I`m sure of one thing, the future will be better. You`ll see, next year will be better.”
“I am a midfielder”
Still promises. The numbers, meanwhile, say that in the 45 minutes he played against Wydad, he touched the ball just 19 times, completed 12 positive passes, had 3 duels, recovered one ball, and lost 5. He came on at the start of the second half for McKennie in midfield and then moved further forward in the last 17 minutes when Tudor brought on Locatelli for the end of the match. In short, Koop is still a character in search of a role, or at least a well-defined position on the field. All thanks to his versatility, which led him to move around a lot under Motta, and which ultimately became almost a burden rather than a resource. A form of sacrifice that somehow disoriented him and prevented him from immediately becoming a reference point and central figure in the Juventus game. Physical problems did the rest – the Achilles tendon inflammation is just the latest setback he is still recovering from completely – but now only the future matters.
He says he feels comfortable in Tudor`s 3-4-2-1 system: “I know this system well from my time at Atalanta. Now I`m being used a bit further forward; at Bergamo, I was also deployed in the two-man midfield.” And then the clarification: “I am a midfielder, not an attacker. Even when I play forward, I interpret the role as a midfielder and not a number nine or a wide forward.” Couldn`t be clearer… Tudor is taking note, the two talk a lot; they did so at Continassa when training resumed before the World Cup and continue to do so in the United States, where he seems to be starting to drop back compared to what was seen under Tudor in the league. Consistency is what the Croatian can guarantee his midfielder; stability and more tactical certainty are what the Dutchman hopes to gain. Then, of course: “I`ll play anywhere to help the team win.” But that was also the motto last season. The future will have to tell a different story.
