Juventus and Sassuolo have remained in touch to discuss the Manuel Locatelli deal, but they have yet to schedule a new meeting. The reason for the delay is that the two sides are still distant on the conditions of the deal and are not ready to seal it. The Neroverdi rejected the first official bid with no hesitation, Calciomercato.com reports.
Juventus proposed a €5M two-year loan with a €25M option to buy. The acquisition would have automatically become permanent if they qualified for the Champions League. After what happened last season, Sassuolo want more guarantees that the sale will be final.
The Emilian club are using a €40M offer from Arsenal as leverage in the talks. They could accept the formula indicated by Juventus, but only at a higher sum, the site informs. Their latest request was €35M between the fee of the loan and an obligation to buy, plus €10M possible add-ons of various difficulty.
The ball is now in the Bianconeri’s court. Their attempts to fill the gap by inserting one of their youngsters have been come up empty. It could still happen in a separate operation. Radu Dragusin’s agent stated: “The recent rumors are untrue; he has not greenlighted any move. The management has not contacted us to discuss his exit. If they will, we are ready to evaluate such possibility.” Juventus are leaning on the will of the midfielder, who is pushing to join and has not taken into consideration the bids from Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund, Alfredo Pedullà informs.