Former Leeds United loanee Weston McKennie credits his time at Elland Road for his improvement this season.
After being unwanted by Juventus last year, and almost pushed out of the club, former Leeds United coach Jesse Marsch took a chance and signed the midfielder on loan.
He wasn’t impressive at all during his loan spell but had a place in the team due to injuries and absences. However, this season he has become a crucial part of Max Allegro’s team and is a regular starter. The USMNT midfielder credits his loan in England as the catalyst for his recent performances this season:
“I left Juventus after the winter break last year and went to Leeds. It didn’t go as planned, obviously, I didn’t have the best performances and I felt like I let certain people down.
“At the end of the day I think it was important to have an experience like that at this moment of my career, because when I came back, it felt like I was coming here for the first time.
“When I first came to Juventus, nobody knew who I was, everybody doubted me, everyone against me. It put the chip back on my shoulder and that is when I perform best, when I prove that I can do it and I do belong. So it was nice to come back and have that feeling again.”
This follows a spell at Leeds where the midfielder himself admitted he wasn’t in the best shape and blamed himself for the poor performances at the club.
