Arsenal Make Contact With Juventus to Sign Manuel Locatelli in January

According to reports in Italy, Arsenal have inquired about the possibility to sign Juventus midfielder Manuel Locatelli in the January transfer window. The Gunners want to bring in a central midfielder to strengthen their midfield squad depth and have identified the Italian as a potential target.

Manuel Locatelli is a very talented player and is already a star for Italy. His performances at the European Championship prove his mettle and talent. He will certainly add value to any team he joins and Mikel Arteta’s side are in desperate need of a player of his calibre.

Manuel Locatelli, Juventus, Arsenal — Image Obtained Via Juventus

The North London side marked the Italian midfielder as a primary target last summer and were willing to pay the Sassuolo’s asking price for the player. However, Locatelli chose to join Juventus on a two-year loan deal with an obligation to buy.

As reported by The Sun, Arsenal seem to have revived their interest in Manuel Locatelli and have contacted Juventus over a possible deal in the upcoming January window. The Gunners are willing to make a straight swap with the Turin based club, with Albert Sambi Lokonga going in the other direction as both the players are valued around the £26 million mark.

Lokonga has struggled to establish his place in the midfield, even in the absence of Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey. This season, the Partey-Xhaka combo has been phenomenal, although Partey has been susceptible to injuries which is a cause of concern.

Arsenal are reportedly set to offer Sambi Lokonga in a straight swap deal for Juventus' Manuel Locatelli.

Via: (Daily Express) pic.twitter.com/EZb9peE7Hk

— Bet9ja (@Bet9jaOfficial) October 7, 2022

Manuel Locatelli has all the necessary traits that Arsenal require – a top player, someone who can boss the midfield area. He also has an eye for goal. Given his young age, his ceiling for improvement is pretty high and being valued at £26m, he represents a very good option.

Player Profile

Locatelli’s youth career began in 2007 at Atalanta, where he spent three years before moving to AC Milan at the age of 11. His talent was undisputed as he successfully progressed through the ranks of each youth category and was eventually offered a professional contract by Milan in 2015.

Although he started the 16-17 Serie A season on the bench, the Italian was promoted to AC Milan’s starting lineup after an injury to Riccardo Montolivo. However, with the arrival of Gennaro Gattuso as head coach in November 2017, Locatelli slipped down the pecking order and joined Sassuolo on loan with an obligation to buy for €12.5 million plus bonuses.

Since then, the 24-year-old’s career has only been on the way up. Although he is a defensive midfielder, he can also play as a number eight due to his agility and passing range. Since moving to Juventus last summer, Locatelli has already made 52 appearances, besides chipping in three goals and five assists (stats via Transfermarkt).

Manuel Locatelli – Class Player https://t.co/GeUXG6OEB2

— 19’🃏 (@dybalix_) July 29, 2022

Last season saw the Italy international make more passes into the final third of the pitch (127) than any other player at the club, as well as having the second-highest number of successful tackles (31), highlighting how useful he can be in the middle of the park with and without the ball.

The Italian can be described as a play-making central midfielder who also possesses some of the qualities of a traditional defensive midfielder. Although predominantly right-footed, Locatelli often drifts out of his central midfield position into the inside left channel, from where he has the ability to shift play to the right side with a crossfield pass. Overall, the midfielder covers a lot of ground, putting in a shift both offensively and defensively.

His offensive contribution in terms of advancing the play through penetrating passes or recycling the ball when necessary makes up the offensive mechanism of Juventus. He influences the game by spreading passes into attacking areas, leaving Juventus’ more advanced players in the final third with the responsibility of creating goal-scoring chances.

Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano insists that the Old Lady have no plan to offload the 24-year-old any time soon, especially after the difficulty they went through to get him to Turin in the first place. But Juventus have been poor this season, both in Serie A and the Champions League, while Arsenal have exceeded all expectations and top of the Premier League table right now, so the player might seek greener pastures.

The Italian midfielder is a classy player, a proper midfielder who fights for second balls, keeps possession in tight spaces and has an eye for goals and assists. Arsenal have made their intentions very clear regarding Manuel Locatelli, while Juventus are still looking to keep him. If the Gunners can work out a deal with the Serie A side, this could be one of the most exciting transfer deals of the winter.

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