Juventus will have to seek alternative targets after Lewis Ferguson’s ACL tear and Felipe Anderson’s surprising move to Palmeiras. The Bianconeri were confident the Lazio winger would have joined them. However, the leaked rumors might have contributed to his choice as they irked his entourage, Fabrizio Romano reports. Instead, they had met multiple times with the representatives of the Bologna star, Tuttomercatoweb’s Mirko Di Natale relays.
The Bianconeri continue chasing Teun Koopmeiners, but his price tag is exorbitant, TuttoSport informs. They see Mikel Merino as an ideal reinforcement for any scheme and coach. He’s fairly similar to Adrien Rabiot. They will zero in on him if the Frenchman leaves in June once his contract runs out.
The Spaniard has a €60M release clause in his contract, but Juventus believe €40/45M could be enough to get him. They are unlikely to splurge on multiple players in the same role. They are very attentive to potential Bosman additions, such as Jorginho or Leicester City’s Wilfred Ndidi.
As for the wings, the Bianconeri are showing interest in Mason Greenwood, Anthony Martial, and Edon Zhegrova. Instead, they will have to abandon their pursuit of Mattia Zaccagni.
Our Take on Juventus, Ferguson, and Felipe Anderson
The former is a bigger potential loss because the midfield needs reinforcements more than the flanks. They could technically be set wide if they kept everybody, including their youngsters out on loan, but it is probably a stretch.
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