Sassuolo director Giovanni Carnevali warns Juventus that they will keep Manuel Locatelli unless ‘there is an adequate proposal’ for a sale.
The Italy international has made it abundantly clear he wants to join Juve, rejecting Arsenal despite the Premier League side offering €40m plus bonuses.
That is considerably more than the Bianconeri are putting forward, believed to be a two-year loan with option to buy for a total of circa €30m plus bonuses and a percentage of any future transfer fee.
Ahead of another big meeting set for this week, Sassuolo director Carnevali warned they were in no rush to get rid of Locatelli.
“We are waiting for an adequate proposal, otherwise Locatelli will remain at Sassuolo,” Carnevali told La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“We will close our transfer market in the first few days of August.”
The deadline is set, the pressure is now all on Juve, as Locatelli should return to training on Monday after helping Italy win UEFA EURO 2020.
Sassuolo are one of the most financially-stable clubs in Serie A, so have no reason to sell one of their star players.
Locatelli might feel ready for the step up at age 23, but Juventus are short on funds and need to sell before they can invest.