Former Juventus Defender Mehdi Benatia Talks Miralem Pjanić Future, Heaps Praise On Young Stars

Former Juventus


center-back Mehdi Benatia believes Miralem Pjanić’s future is best served with the Old Lady and has also hailed young duo Merih Demiral and Matthijs de Ligt.

Benatia made 59 appearances for Juve netting on five occasions, having signed for the club permanently in the summer of 2017 from Bayern Munich, following his previous loan spell in Turin.

The 32-year-old Morrocan has stated Pjanić wants to ‘stay in Turin’ and has also claimed the postponement of Serie A ‘will do him good’, whilst also claiming the midfielder has become ‘really tired’.

Benatia remains in close contact with many of the stars at the Allianz Stadium and was also a teammate of Pjanić at Roma before his move to Juve. 

Bosnia-Herzegovina talisman Pjanić has found life hard under coach Maurizio Sarri since the Italian took over the reins last summer, but Benatia believes the 30-year-old isn’t finished just yet.

“Before Inter, Mira didn’t feel at his best, but let’s look at how many games he has played,” Benatia told Tuttosport. “He’s among the Bianconeri players with the most appearances.

“He has also adapted to a new tactical system and since Sarri came, Juventus have often played with a trequartista behind the two strikers.

“He had to run a lot, just like [Blaise] Matuidi. Both confessed to me that they were really tired. That’s hard for everyone. Less ball possession and more running. In the end, he injured his adductors.

“I understand that Sarri wants him to play the ball more, but he must be physically well for the team to benefit. Mire is always able to find you in position when the opponents press. He has more quality than the others.

“[Rodrigo] Bentancur has a bright future ahead of him and will become one of the best, but at the moment he is still a step behind.

“Pjanić also self-criticises, he doesn’t get angry if he is replaced knowing he is not playing well. He will try to recover his contribution. He is the first to take it out on himself. At the end of a game I called to compliment him, he was nervous and told me he had played a bad game because he lost possession in two dangerous situations.”

Paris Saint-Germain have previously kept tabs on Pjanic, but a move away from Turin is ‘quite the contrary’, claims the current Al Duhail defender.

“This break will do him good; he can return to be the best in Italy and among the best in the world.”

“He still has three years left on his contract and he’s fine at Juventus, but he indeed has the possibility to leave in every transfer market,” Benatia later said. “PSG are interested in him, earlier, even Real Madrid was looking at him but, in the end, he extended with the Bianconeri.

“His love for Juventus prevailed, where he feels confident. In the dressing room, he is one of the senators, he knows how to make himself heard and respected.

“Then, we know, situations can change, the club can decide to sell him. But if it depends on the player, he will stay in Turin. He has never told me that he wants to change the environment, quite the contrary. With Juve, he changed his mentality, now he plays to win, always.”

Juventus are blessed with young talent in their ranks and in particular, both Demiral and Matthijs de Ligt have come under the watchful eye of the former Juve defender.

Having joined from Ajax at the end of the last campaign, De Ligt has received a lot of criticism for failing to hit the ground running since his $82.3million move.

“De Ligt has everything it takes to stay ten years in Turin,” Benatia told Tuttosport. “He is one of the best around and, since he arrived in Turin, he has developed in training next to many great champions.

Before suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury against Roma back in January, Turkey international Demiral was a key figure in the heart of the Juve backline. Sarri preferred the young defender over De Ligt, who featured just five times beforehand and has to settle for a place on the bench.

Benatia remains a keen admirer of Demiral and also declares the 22-year-old has a bright future in Italy.

“But I also like Demiral, he impressed me from the first game, the summer-friendly against Inter. He confirmed the words of a friend of mine at Sassuolo.

“I also spoke to [Miralem] Pjanić about it. I told him he would play, even if Mire was a little sceptical. Demiral can be aggressive, breathe the attacker down the neck, always looking to anticipate. It’s sad about the injury.”

Not only could Juve benefit from the return of a revitalised Pjanić, the future looks bright at the back, when both Giorgio Chiellini, 34, and 32-year-old Leonardo Bonucci move on or hang up their boots for good. Benatia believes there are two key center-backs ready to take charge, as well as a midfield dynamo who will come back refreshed when Serie A, resumes once the coronavirus epidemic in Italy allows.