Serie A club believe they could sign Barcelona star on loan with €15m purchase option this summer - Reports

Juventus are reportedly confident of signing Barcelona's Franck Kessie on loan with a mandatory buy-clause of €15 million.

Kessie arrived in Catalonia last summer on a free transfer from AC Milan but has struggled to be a regular starter in Xavi Hernandez's midfield. Twenty-one of his 28 La Liga appearances last term came from the bench.

Juventus, as per journalist Nicola Balice (h/t ManagingBarca), reckon they could sign Kessie on loan, who has three years left in his contract. The potential deal could include a mandatory buy-clause in the region of €15 million.

Gavi, Pedri, Frenkie de Jong and Ilkay Gundogan could be ahead of the 26-year-old in the pecking order next season. It remains to be seen if Barca sign off on such a deal.

It's no secret that they want to use the cash generated from sales to register their new signings and buy more players. Kessie, though, provides depth and competition in Xavi's midfield.

The Cote d'Ivoire international may not have had a lot of starts last season but featured in 43 games across competitions. Juventus, meanwhile, have no shortage of options in the middle of the park.

Manuel Locatelli is the latest player to join their midfield ranks, which also has Denis Zakaria, Paul Pogba, Adrien Rabiot, Nicolo Fagioli, Fabio Miretti and Mohamed Ihattaren. Rabiot, though, has strongly been linked with an exit this summer.

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Pedri earmarks areas to improve at Barcelona next season

Pedri has said that he's aiming for more assists and goals at Barcelona next season.

The 20-year-old midfielder registered seven goals and one assist in 35 games across competitions last campaign. He also missed 15 games due to two injuries.

In a recent interview ahead of Barca's now-cancelled pre-season friendly against Juventus, the Spain international told SPORT (h/t BarcaUniversal):

"I have to improve a lot of things. I think I provided very few assists last year… I have to get to the box more. I have to improve. I didn’t fulfil the challenge of scoring ten goals. I have to be better."

In his three full seasons at Barcelona, the former Las Palmas midfielder has registered 16 goals and eight assists in 109 games across competitions.