Randal Kolo Muani is still waiting to fully find his rhythm in a Juventus shirt, but one former Bianconeri striker has few doubts , the goals will come.
Former Italian international Luka Toni spoke to La Gazzetta dello Sport about Juventus’ forwards, particularly discussing Kolo Muani, from whom he expects a serious goalscoring contribution by the end of the season.
TONI: “KOLO MUANI’S GOALS WILL COME, TRUST ME”
Toni believes the criticism aimed at the French striker at the start of the season was too harsh, although he understands the pressure that comes with playing for Juventus.
“Kolo Muani’s goals will come, trust me. I like Kolo. At the start of the season he had some problems and received a lot of criticism, probably too much. However, when you wear Juventus’ number nine shirt and you are paid a lot, that is part of the game.”
Toni particularly highlighted Kolo Muani’s contribution against Atalanta and believes the Frenchman has shown signs of improvement.
“I EXPECT AT LEAST 15 GOALS, MAYBE EVEN 20”
Kolo Muani scored his first goal of the season in the Europa League against NEC, but is still waiting for his first Serie A goal. Toni believes it is only a matter of time before the Frenchman starts scoring regularly.
“He is not a classic goalscorer, but he has always scored goals. I expect at least 15 goals from him, maybe even 20 during the season.”
That is a significant expectation for a striker who faced plenty of pressure at the beginning of the season, but Toni clearly believes Kolo Muani has the quality to turn things around.
KOLO MUANI AND WOLTEMADE TOGETHER?
One possibility for Spalletti is to play Kolo Muani and Nick Woltemade together, but Toni does not expect that to become Juventus’ standard solution.
“I don’t think Spalletti particularly likes playing with two central strikers. Two number nines are more of a solution during a match, when you need to unlock a closed game. There is also the question of balance. Kolo Muani is certainly versatile and can be effective when playing wider or as a second striker.”
TONI IS NOT COMPLETELY CONVINCED BY WOLTEMADE
While he is very optimistic about Kolo Muani, Toni was considerably more reserved when discussing Woltemade.
“I’m not that impressed by him, because he doesn’t seem particularly clinical in front of goal, and that should be a centre-forward’s first quality.”
However, the former Juventus striker acknowledges that the German possesses other qualities that are highly valued in modern football.
“Nowadays, forwards who work hard for the team are in fashion and, from that point of view, the German is good because he has quality and technique. I prefer a striker who may make a mistake with a pass, but then sends everything he receives in the penalty area into the net.”
TONI ALSO WORE THE JUVENTUS SHIRT
Toni’s words carry additional weight for Bianconeri fans because he also wore the Juventus shirt.
The Italian goalscorer joined Turin on January 8, 2011, during the 2010/11 season. That season, he made 16 official appearances in all competitions and scored two goals for Juventus.
One of his goals came against Cagliari, when he came off the bench and found the net late in the match.
Although his spell in Turin did not last long, Toni knows very well the pressure that comes with being Juventus’ centre-forward , which makes his prediction that Kolo Muani could finish the season with between 15 and 20 goals particularly interesting.
Source: La Gazzetta dello Sport – interview with Luka Toni
