Arkadiusz Milik has been arguably the best Juventus player so far this season and reveals he didn’t hesitate when the call came. ‘It was always my dream to play for a club like Juve.’
The Poland international made the move on loan from Olympique Marseille on August 26, well into the new campaign, and there is an option to buy for €7m plus bonuses.
“I feel really good with the Juve jersey on my back,” Milik told Meczyki while on international duty with Poland.
“I told my agent not to bother me unless there was a concrete offer, so after Marseille-Nantes he called and said Juve were interested. He flew out for talks and that was the first time I knew there really was something there more than just general contact.
“The choice did not take long, as it was always my dream to play for a club like Juve. I wanted a top team since I was a little boy and we can count the number of truly big clubs on the fingers of just two hands.
“I took the opportunity and after all had nothing to lose.”
This was a return to Serie A for Milik, who already played for Napoli from 2016 to January 2021.
At the time, he spent the final six months in the stands as punishment for rejecting a contract extension and trying to push through a Juve transfer.
Instead, he was sold to Olympique Marseille to send him abroad.
“It’s true, I was close to joining Juve in the past, but the two clubs need to reach an agreement,” confessed the 28-year-old.
“At the time, there was no deal and so I didn’t go to Juve. Napoli also rejected an offer from Roma, who were offering more money. It was their decision and I respected it. I’m happy that I have the chance now to play for Juve, as it’s an honour to be at such a big club.
“The fun thing is that every time I seemed close to joining Juve, Wojciech Szczesny would call me. I don’t know how he found out about the transfer, but when he called, nothing had emerged in the media yet.”
Milik has certainly hit the ground running in the Bianconeri jersey, scoring three goals in just six appearances between Serie A and the Champions League.
It was almost four goals, but his winner against Salernitana was controversially disallowed using VAR for an incorrect offside call.