Not so long ago the Turin press were saying Matteo Darmian to Juventus was 95% done and all that was missing was the announcement.
There were even Italian reports of the Manchester United player arriving in Italy for a medical to join Juve.
But as we pointed out through much of the saga, there was a lot of confidence from Turin over the Darmian deal, but not a lot of detail.
It was repeatedly stated Jose Mourinho had given the green light to a deal, not believing Darmian to be an important part his squad, but there was always a lack of financial certainty.
And as soon as that hurdle needed to be jumped, the deal started to stumble. In their Saturday edition, Gazzetta dello Sport report the two clubs are currently in a ‘war of nerves’ over the transfer fee.
United want €20m, Juve want to pay €15m, and Napoli wait at the window waving €18m.
Everyone wants it sorting out quickly.