Juventus signed Pape Matar Sarr on loan from Tottenham late in the summer transfer window. However, the player is yet to get going in Turin.
Juve finally signed the midfielder on an initial loan with an option to buy worth €27.5m. It becomes an obligation to buy if he plays 50% of the games for the Turin club, and they qualify for the Champions League or Europa League.
Sarr was out of Roberto De Zerbi’s project at Tottenham. The Italian had made it clear publicly after the club’s loss to Newcastle United.
Fitness issues linger
Corriere dello Sport cover how Juve are suffering from multiple injuries. Khephren Thuram is out for several months and Manuel Locatelli is now set to undergo knee surgery. This will keep him out until 2027.
The newspaper also covered the Tottenham loanee, who didn’t feature against AC Milan at the weekend.
The midfielder is currently training separately as he hasn’t quite recovered from a muscle injury. This is an injury he picked up at Spurs and Juve are taking no risks with his fitness.
They believe ‘the risk of relapse must be avoided’, especially with both Locatelli and Thuram out. As a result, Sarr won’t be available for the next game against Sassuolo and will continue to be monitored by the Bianconeri staff.
Our take: Fitness could be concerning
Even during his time at Tottenham, the 23-year-old wasn’t always fit. Muscle injuries were a problem throughout and that hasn’t changed in Turin.
Spurs will hope things take a turn quickly. If they don’t, Sarr may not end up meeting the conditions needed for Juve to sign him permanently.
Every match Sarr misses means he needs to play a higher percentage of those left.
