Recent reports suggest that Juventus are likely to delve into the January transfer market to bring in a new midfielder and three specific names have been highlighted by the press in Italy.
Despite being satisfied with the squad assembled over the summer, Max Allegri and his team have had to deal with the long-term suspensions handed to Paul Pogba after his failed doping test, and to Nicolo Fagioli for his involvement in illegal gambling.
La Gazzetta dello Sport have reported that Juventus will try to bring in another established option in the middle of the park, which will likely cost them a fee of around €25m-€35m depending on their exact targets.
Three names have been suggested by La Gazzetta, one of whom already plays in Serie A, the other two currently ply their trades in the Premier League and LaLiga.
One suggestion that has been mentioned, one that has already been reported by numerous outlets in recent weeks, is Udinese’s Lazar Samardzic.
The 21-year-old was close to securing a move to Inter in the summer, but an agreement on personal terms was not reached, leading to an eventual collapse of the deal.
Juventus are said to have a solid relationship with Udinese, and Samardzic would not need to adapt to playing in a new league. He is also a player with his best years still ahead of him and one who could retain a significant sell-on value in the future.
La Gazzetta writes that a total sum of around €30m would be required to lure Samardzic away from Udinese, although other outlets have reported that an initial loan-deal with an obligation to buy may be the most realistic formula.
Elsewhere, Juventus have also been linked with a move for Tottenham midfielder and Denmark international Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg. Since the arrival of Ange Postecoglou in North London, the 28-year-old has fallen out of favour in the Tottenham midfield.
The only concern about Hojbjerg’s availability in January is Tottenham’s cohort of midfielders who will travel to the Africa Cup of Nations next year. Given that they may be left short, Spurs would likely prefer to move the Dane on in the summer.
The other name highlighted by La Gazzetta is Atletico Madrid’s World Cup winner Rodrigo De Paul.
Like Samardzic, De Paul already has plenty of experience in Serie A with Udinese, having played in Serie A for five seasons between 2016 and 2021.
La Gazzetta reports that De Paul currently earns a relatively low salary of around €3m and that it would take somewhere in the region of €25m to bring him back to Italy.