Juventus are looking to try and find a new club for Federico Chiesa but they fear he could wind down his deal and sign somewhere for free next season, with AC Milan linked.
That is according to SportMediaset, who report that the tug of war between Juventus and Chiesa experienced another decisive stage yesterday, with the decision being made by the Turin-based club to banish him from first team training.
Sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli and head coach Thiago Motta are clear: the Italian winger has known for some time that he is not in their plans and they will not go back on this. The mission now is to sell him by the end of the window for around €25m, his residual value on the accounts.
Juve fear that Chiesa already has a verbal agreement with another team for summer 2025, when his deal expires, which causes an issue both with regards to the revenue going down the drain and the idea that they might now have to pay his salary for another year.
However, Chiesa’s situation at present could motivate him to leave immediately because it is one thing to be able to train with the first team, perhaps snatching a few minutes on the pitch, but it is another thing to have an entire season on the sidelines.
Last week his agent Fali Ramadani met with both the Inter and Milan managements to see if they are keen. The Nerazzurri seem unsure because Beppe Marotta loves a free transfer but it seems difficult to adapt Chiesa to Simone Inzaghi’s 3-5-2.
For their Rossoneri it would be a sort of ‘wild card’ move, one that Zlatan Ibrahimovic himself recently said that the club remain open to, even if the salary that the winger earns and the fee that Juve want make it seem more like fantasy.
In recent weeks, Chiesa has also been linked to Napoli (the tactical argument would also apply to Antonio Conte) and Roma (who then signed Matias Soulé). Teams in the Premier League and Bayern Munich took information in July but nothing has happened since, leaving his situation a mystery.