Juventus and Sassuolo will reportedly resume talks over Manuel Locatelli’s long-awaited switch to Turin in the coming week. According to Gazzetta dello Sport via (TUTTOmercatoWEB), the parties will try to broker the midfielder’s move to the Allianz Arena despite last week’s breakdown.
Juventus have been trying to negotiate Locatelli’s arrival since the end of Euro 2020. However, they have yet to come anywhere near Sassuolo’s €40m valuation of their prized asset, which continues to put the spanner in the works to Italian’s dream fulfillment.
Although Locatelli handed Juventus’ hopes of closing out the deal a massive boost by pressuring Sassuolo to ship him out to Turin, the Old Lady still have to find the structure to get it over the line.
Talks between the parties fell apart last week, but the Bianconeri are confident of seeing through in the upcoming period. Arsenal and Liverpool were also in the race, but the player’s wish has effectively kicked them out of the race.
Locatelli is seen by Massimiliano Allegri as an immediate upgrade on his current midfield options as the re-appointed boss aims to bring Juve back to the top of Serie A next season.
Juventus are also on the lookout for a couple of midfield additions. In addition to Locatelli, the record-time Italian champions are also interested in bringing Miralem Pjanic back from Barcelona. Per various reports, one won’t exclude the other as Juve look to offload some deadwood.
The Catalans are dealing with massive financial problems and are ready to sanction the Bosnian’s return to the Allianz Stadium on favorable terms. Pjanic could soon come back on a two-year loan, which won’t affect Juventus’ hopes of landing Locatelli.