Samardzic: Udinese midfielder reveals how close he was to joining Inter, Napoli and Juventus

Udinese midfielder Lazar Samardzic, one of the hottest properties on the Serie A market during the 2023 summer transfer window, has revealed just how close he was to joining Inter, Napoli and Juventus, before ultimately staying put in Udine eight months ago.

Samardzic had looked set to join the Nerazzurri in the summer, arriving in the city of Milan for a medical and document signing. Current Bologna midfielder Giovanni Fabbian was also set to be included as part of the sale

Problems then emerged, which resulted in the then-21-year-old Samardzic returning to Udinese. Fabbian would later be snapped up by Thiago Motta at Bologna.

Samardzic has given a recent interview to La Repubblica, during which he revealed how close he was to joining the Nerazzurri.

“I was very close (to joining Inter),” Samardzic admitted. “But then something happened, nothing too serious,” he said, reported via TMW.

There had also been interest from both the reigning Serie A champions, Napoli, as well as from Juventus, who are led in the transfer market by former Partenopei director Cristiano Giuntoli as of last summer.

On his links with Napoli, Samardzic revealed that he “was not as close as people were saying.”

He then shut down his suggestions that he was close to joining Juventus, adding: “I didn’t know anything about it.”