Due to their current injury woes, Juventus will resort to the market in January, and the club’s football director Cristiano Giuntoli revealed which position is considered the ultimate priority.
Fans and observers have been calling for the club to act in mid-season by bolstering two positions in particular: The attack and the defense.
Last summer, the Bianconeri parted ways with Moise Kean who’s currently flourishing in Florence. On the other hand, Arkadiusz Milik was kept as a backup for Dusan Vlahovic. However, the Pole has been struggling with a knee problem since June. While he was initially expected to return in October, the pain persisted, so he had no choice but to go under the knife.
Therefore, Vlahovic has been Thiago Motta’s only available striker, forcing him to start every single match thus far this season.
As for the defense, Gleison Bremer’s season-ending ACL injury was a massive blow for the club. Motta’s backline hasn’t been the same afterwards, with Danilo particularly struggling for form.
Although Juventus earned a clean sheet yesterday against Udinese, Giuntoli still intends on bolstering the defense as he revealed ahead of the contest.
The former Napoli sporting director argues the squad contains players who can replace Vlahovic when required
“Our market objective? A central defender, more than a striker,” said the 52-year-old in his pre-match interview with DAZN via IlBianconero.
“Vlahovic’s backup? We have the possibility of playing others, like Nico Gonzalez who is out now. Yildiz too. Milik can also give a hand when he returns.”
Giuntoli was also asked about Paris Saint-Germain wantaway defender Milan Skriniar who’s being heavily linked with a move to Turin, but he insisted it’s a premature topic.
“It’s premature to talk about it now. At the moment, we are not making any moves as it’s still early. We are waiting and seeing what will happen.”
Striker or defender??? Striker AND defender!