'Terrorized' - Italian media deliver Lloyd Kelly verdict after Juventus debut & Newcastle United transfer

After just six months at Newcastle, Kelly left to join Juventus on an initial loan deal with an obligation to buy for around £20million at the end of the season. Kelly was limited to mainly substitute appearances during his time at Newcastle and made his Juventus debut off the bench on Friday evening.

Kelly was introduced as a half-time substitute for Nicolo Savona at left-back with Juventus drawing 1-1 at Como. The Turin club managed to secure a late 2-1 win with another new signing, Randal Kolo Muani, scoring twice including a last-minute penalty.

Despite Kelly getting off to a winning start at Juve, there was a mixed response to his debut.

Thiago Motta reacts to Lloyd Kelly debut

Juventus manager Thiago Motta has been satisfied with Kelly’s start to life in Italy.

“Lloyd very good,” Motta said. “First of all, he is a fantastic singer [in his initiation]!

“He is a shy boy, he came in the right way. Physically he is very good, he can play as a central defender and also as a full-back. I saw him with great confidence. He suffered some fouls, but just like all the others who arrived.”

Italian media critical of Lloyd Kelly

While Motta was content with Kelly’s debut, the Italian media weren’t so kind to the new arrival.

Calciomercato gave Kelly a 5/10 score in their player ratings, stating: “Rather timid impact and clearly poor execution. (No, he didn’t give confidence).”

But JuveFC.com were more complimentary with a 6.5/10 rating, stating: “Settled quickly into the rhythm of the game.”

Juventus outlet Max Statman gave Kelly a 3/10 stating with a scathing verdict.

They wrote: “He didn’t show any effort at all today, took him a whole of five minutes on debut to get megged. He has the attitude of a Sunday League player walking around when Como were in deadly positions.”

And CBS journalist Matteo Bonetti tweeted during the match: “Lloyd Kelly getting terrorized by Gabi Strefezza in his Juventus debut.”

Next up for Juventus is the Champions League play-off round match against PSV Eindhoven at home on Tuesday night (8pm kick-off GMT).

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