With Gianluigi Buffon revealing next season will most likely be his last as a footballer, Juventus have ramped up their attempts to sign his successor, with the number one target being Arsenal’s Wojciech Szczesny.
The Poland international’s two seasons spent at Roma have helped him regain some stature in European football, and Juventus are said to be convinced he is the man to follow in the 39-year-old’s footsteps at Juventus Stadium.
Arsenal, down their end, don’t appear to have any plans to keep Szczesny beyond this season, and with a contract at the Emirates running out in 2018, this summer is the perfect time to sell.
Napoli were the first to be interested, but the Gunners’ demands of €14m+ for the 27-year-old put them off, and that’s when Juventus stepped in.
Of course, a transfer to the Serie A champions would see him more often than not sit on the bench in his first season there, but that’s something Szczesny seems prepared to do if Italian reports are to be believed.
However, before any of this happens, the two clubs need to agree on a fee, and Gazzetta dello Sport claim this is still some way off.
As previously mentioned, Arsenal value the goalkeeper around €15m, yet, so far, all Juventus have offered is €4-5m.
Still, Gazzetta are confident a deal will be reached in the future, with ‘diplomacy likely to draw them nearer’ to an agreement.
