Following Juventus’ signing on loan of Southampton midfielder Carlos Alcaraz, Gazzetta dello Sport on Friday decided to present the player to their readers.
After all, few would have seen the Argentine in action, and considering the €49.5m option to buy in the deal, there are some doubts as to whether the Serie A side will actually pay that amount.
The Italian newspaper try to clarify some of that, explaining that a lot will depend on how Southampton’s season in the Championship pans out.
The Saints are currently third, one point behind Ipswich Town, and still have a good chance of avoiding the playoffs if they get a good run of form in the next 18 games.
While the fee put in the deal by Southampton and agreed by Juventus is ‘certainly exorbitant’, the belief is it ‘should not be taken too literally’.
That’s because ‘many factors’ can influence whether the Serie A side trigger that clause or not, because if the St Mary’s side fail to make it back to the top-tier, it would be ‘difficult’ for Alcaraz to return to England.
What works in Southampton’s favour is they are ‘among the clubs most interested’ in Matias Soulé, and should they get promotion, they could set up a new ‘cross-negotiation’ with Juventus for the two players.
In short, if they want Soulé, the Italians can use their player to reduce the fee for Alcaraz.
Furthermore, Juventus do hold the midfielder ‘in high esteem’ and certainly consider him a signing for now and also for the future.
