As we all know, the Regista is one of the most celebrated positions in Calcio. This role refers to a player who sits deep in the middle of the park while orchestrating the play with an effortless elegant touch.

Until this very day, Andrea Pirlo remains the ultimate symbol for the deep-lying playmaker role, and it’s no coincidence that his arrival to Juventus in 2011 was concurrent with the club’s revival under the guidance of Antonio Conte.

Following the Maestro’s departure in 2015, Miralem Pjanic proved to be the missing piece in midfield after joining the Old Lady’s ranks in 2016.

But since the Bosnian’s decline and subsequent departure, Juventus have been sorely missing a genuine Regista who can help the club in kickstarting another winning dynasty.

Last summer, the Bianconeri ended Arthur Melo’s failed experiment, replacing him with Leandro Paredes.

However, the latter isn’t faring much better that the current Liverpool player. So will the Argentine become Arthur 2.0?

Well, the jury remains out on Paredes’ time in Turin, but the striking resemblance between his and the Brazilian’s stint is evident.

Exciting Arrivals

In 2020, the majority of observers believed that Fabio Paratici struck gold when he traded Pajnic’s services for the younger Arthur.

Sadly, the controversial exchange proved to be disastrous for all parties involved.

In a reminiscent matter, the arrival of Paredes was also met with great excitement amongst Juventus supporters (us included) who considered the Argentine to be the missing link in Max Allegri’s woeful midfield.

Yet, the outcome remains far from satisfying.

Easily Usurped

Except for a brief period during Pirlo’s tenure, Arthur never had a run as a regular starter at Juventus.

The Brazilian had often remained on the bench, with the likes of Adrien Rabiot, Rodrigo Bentancur, Weston McKennie and later Manuel Locatelli ahead of him in the pecking order.

Following his loan switch from PSG, Paredes immediately slotted in Allegri’s first lineup, but aside from a few flashes of talent, he hardly displayed the type of performances desired by the managerial staff.

Similarly to Arthur, Paredes found himself on the outs, especially following Locatelli’s return from injury.

Perceived Superiority

Another common aspect between Arthur and Paredes is the perceived superiority over the rest of their teammates in terms of technique.

The Brazilian and Argentine are both deemed as ballers who possess excellent on-the-ball skills.

Yet, they’re both shunned in favor of players who don’t quite fit the mold of the typical Regista (mainly Locatelli).

Injury Problems

Every time Arthur threatened to break into the first lineup, an injury would occur, killing any gathered momentum in the process.

While Paredes has only recently sustained his first knock in Turin, we can only hope that it doesn’t become a recurring theme given his alerting injury record from the previous campaign.

All in all, let’s hope that Paredes’ stint comes to life in the second half of the campaign and proves to be an upgrade on his Brazilian predecessor.