If you’ve followed our website for the past month or so, you’ll know that Arsenal have tried their best to sign Manuel Locatelli from Sassuolo.
The Italian midfielder was the star of the show for the first two games of the Euros before being replaced by Marco Verratti when the Paris Saint-Germain player rediscovered his fitness.
In the meantime, reports suggested the Gunners had made an offer for Locatelli, but his desire to go to Juventus instead has seemingly scuppered any chances of seeing his curly hair at the Emirates next season.
That’s according to Gazzetta dello Sport, who report ‘it’s no coincidence that Arsenal did everything to snatch him’ from the Turin side, and it’s only the player’s determination to sign for Max Allegri’s team that stopped his price from rising.
Wanting to help out their star player, whom they feel deserves a big move, Sassuolo only raised their demands from €30m to around €40m, with the newspaper feeling that had Locatelli not shown as much desire to go to Juventus, the Serie A side ‘would have been ready for an auction, aiming for €60m’.
Instead, the next few days will see the two Italians side meet to discuss a transfer, and the belief is ‘the marriage will most likely be celebrated’.
Corriere dello Sport are of the same mindset, making it clear that while Arsenal did make a superior offer, Locatelli simply ‘said no’ to a move to London.
It seems, for the Italian, that all roads lead to Turin.
