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Juventus could abandon the plan to include Weston McKennie in the deal for Douglas Luiz with Aston Villa and have the American ‘replaced by someone else’.

That’s according to journalist Luca Marchetti, relayed by Bianconera News, who reports that McKennie remains the main blockage in the swap deal between the two clubs.

Juventus have been closing in on a deal for Luiz over the last fortnight, negotiating a deal with Aston Villa that will see them pay a sum and send Weston McKennie and Samue Iling-Junior in part exchange.

The deal has been slowly progressing despite its complicated nature, with Luiz keen on the move and Iling-Junior having quickly agreed terms with Aston Villa as well.

It is McKennie who has proven to be the major issue, with it explained in Italy that he is making demands at Juventus regarding something of a pay off given his contract is set to expire next summer.

This morning there were also claims that he wants a pay rise.

That’s been holding up matters, with his entourage coming in for criticism for their behaviour and the demands that they’ve been making as part of the process.

Marchetti continues that today and suggests Aston Villa and Juventus could actually change their plans and include a different player in the deal instead.

“The obstacle to overcome to date is represented by the requests from McKennie’s entourage,” he said.

“So, either an agreement is reached, or the American will have to be replaced by someone else, but the second hypothesis seems more unlikely to me.

“It is normal for there to be some hiccups in a negotiation that involves so many parties, also because all the players are involved, they want to make their importance count in the exchange and therefore try to maximise their income.”