What’s the story?
According to sources close to the club, Juventus are reportedly chasing Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Marco Verratti and are looking to seal the transfer before the start of the 2017/18 season. The 24-year-old Italian has spent the last four-and-a-half seasons with the Ligue 1 giants and his agent claims the Italy international could make a move with Juventus ready to meet the asking price of €80m.
“Marco wants to win,” his agent Donati Di Campli had said. “His career won’t just be marked by French League titles.
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“PSG is an expensive boutique though,” he continued. When asked what the player’s next destination could be, he said: “Do you want to force me to say it? He could fit at both Inter and Juventus.”
However, it is Juventus who is interested in securing Verratti’s signature. The club’s general manager Giuseppe Marotta had even said that there would be “a big investment for centre-midfield in July”.
In case you didn’t know...
Although Verratti has played in Italy before, he has never played in the Italian Serie A. Having made his senior debut with Pescara as a teenager aged 16, he soon became a midfield sensation as he garnered fame for his performances in the middle of the park.
Verratti’s best position is as a deep-lying playmaker and he helped Pescara gain promotion to the Serie A at the end of the 2011/12 season. It saw him win the Bravo Award for the best U-21 player in Europe – an award previously won by world class players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Thomas Muller and Eden Hazard.
But before he could make his Serie A debut, he was chased by a number of clubs including Juventus, AS Roma and Napoli. However, it was Carlo Ancelotti’s PSG that managed to convince him to move to Paris.
Also read: Pescara, Paris and Pirlo - Marco Verratti's tryst with destiny
The heart of the matter
Verratti’s progress seems to have plateaued at PSG. Although the cash-rich club has won the last four Ligue 1 titles, ending any sort of competition in a league that had five different winners in the years preceding their dominance.
In all, Verratti has won 13 different domestic trophies but has not found success on the European front. PSG struggled to progress under both Carlo Ancelotti and Laurent Blanc. Now, with Unai Emery in charge, PSG finished second in their group and were drawn with Barcelona in the Champions League Round of 16 – a fixture where they are considered second-favourites based on their struggles this season.
In Ligue 1, they are currently in third place. Following the loss of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, the team has never been the same and are currently five points behind leaders Nice. If PSG don’t win either the Ligue 1 or Champions League title, they will have gone backwards and Verratti will consider his future.
What’s next?
Juventus have the wherewithal to bring the Italian back home. Having scouted him in the past, they feel he is the ideal player to slot into midfield and take up the mantle once perfected by Andrea Pirlo.
In truth, Italian clubs were left powerless when he moved to France and even then-Italian coach Cesare Prandelli had called it a “scandal”, saying: “I find it outrageous that a talent like Verratti has been allowed to go abroad. We knew about him and let him go.”
Verratti would slot into a midfield and be in contention with players such as Sami Khedira and Miralem Pjanic. For the Old Lady, he would be the perfect signing to take the next step up in Europe. But the price will be high as he still has another four years to go on his contract.
Sportskeeda’s Take
This seems like the perfect opportunity for Verratti to make the move back to Italy. At the age of 24, it gives the midfielder at least a couple of years to reach his peak and also consolidate his position in the Italian national team.
Massimiliano Allegri made the mistake of allowing Pirlo to leave AC Milan. He will not make that same mistake again with Verratti. It is difficult to see Verratti improve any more than he can under Emery and a weaker PSG side. A club like Juventus would be a massive step up and the fact that they are ready to pay the asking price makes it a win-win situation for both clubs.
