Juventus Confirm Emre Can Interest and Summer Transfer Bid

It can be hard to tell sometimes when it comes to transfer rumours just how much of any story is the truth and how much is spin and contrivance, be it with entirely made up stories or just ones where some small piece of truth has been stretched a by a journalist looking to fill column inches or get more pageviews.

With Juventus and Emre Can, it’s been clear for some time that there is real interest in the player from the Serie A side, but whether it’s been overstated—possibly as a tool by Can’s agent to aid in contract negotiations—has been less certain. Now we know at least the interest was serious enough for Juventus to make a formal bid.

“We have faith in this team and in these lads,” Juventus’ CEO Beppe Marotta told Italy’s Premier Sport today. “As for Emre Can, I don’t think Liverpool will sell him in January. We made an offer for him in the summer but the Reds didn’t sell him so I don’t think they’ll change their mind in the middle of the season.”

With Can yet to sign a new deal and free to agree a pre-contract with another club in January, he might not be making the switch to Juventus in a few months but he could still set himself up for a summer move there—or to some other club—making a new Liverpool contract an increasingly pressing priority.

Liverpool do have the advantage of Premier League money, meaning they can likely offer Can more wages than Juventus would, but what is reportedly holding up negotiations now is Can’s demands of both high wages and a low release clause as a protection against the possibility of not getting enough playing time.

After being a nailed-on starter for the first two months of the season, Can was rotated out of the starting lineup on Sunday and watched from the bench as Liverpool drew 1-1 with Newcastle in another match that saw the Reds dominate everywhere but where it matters most—the final scoreline.