Atalanta have landed their primary target to replace Cristian Romero. They have officially acquired Merih Demiral from Juventus. The Turkish defender joined on a €3M season-long loan with a €25M option to buy in 2022. The Bianconeri will also reportedly get a percentage of a future sale.
The 23-year-old center-back arrived in Italy in January 2019 from Trabzonspor in a €8M move. He quickly established himself as a starter, and Juventus poached him for €18M in July. He had mixed fortunes in Turin, as he was rarely a regular due to the intense competition and some injuries. The Turkish international has accumulated 32 appearances with the Old Lady, scoring once.
Demiral will try to replicate the success of Cristian Romero under the tutelage of Gian Piero Gasperini. Atalanta officially picked up the €16M option to purchase him from Juventus today. The move paves the way for his sale to Tottenham, which will sign him for €55M, including bonuses.
The Argentinian international flew to London Thursday to complete the technicalities of the transfer. He spoke to Sky Sport beforehand: “Tottenham was the best choice. I am very happy for the season I had at Atalanta, and I want to thank Bergamo. I am sorry to leave it, but I have to focus on my career. Hopefully, this will turn out to be a good decision. Gasperini made me grow in a way I did not consider possible. The Spurs proved to be really interested in signing me right away, I liked their project a lot, and so I picked them.”