Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri says Weston McKennie ‘wanted to leave’ in January and is not surprised by the spending gap between Serie A and Premier League in the January transfer window.
The Old Lady host Lazio at the Allianz Stadium on Thursday in the Coppa Italia quarter-finals.
During his pre-match press conference, Allegri was asked his thoughts on the January transfer window that saw Juventus loan McKennie to Leeds United. The Premier League side have an option to make the midfielder’s move permanent at the end of the season.
“Juventus’ Mercato was good, McKennie wanted to leave and he’s found a good option,” said Allegri as quoted by Ilbianconero.
“We sent Zuelli to Pisa, Pellegrini to Lazio, perhaps we’ll face him tomorrow.”
The Italian full-back ended his loan spell at Eintracht Frankfurt, joining Maurizio Sarri’s side on loan until the end of the season.
Premier League spent almost €830m in the January window, making some purchases in Serie A. Jakub Kiwior joined Arsenal from Spezia, Matias Vina left Roma for Bournemouth who also secured the services of Sassuolo‘s Hamed Traorè.
Serie A clubs, on the other hand, spend only €31.2 in the January transfer window.
“It’s useless to make comparisons,” noted Allegri.
“The ratio is clear and is one to four. Premier League generates €8 billion income, Serie A €2 billion.”