Arsenal have reportedly opened talks with Juventus over the transfer of Mario Lemina.
- 23-year-old made 19 Serie A appearances last season
- Arsenal could sign him for £16m
- Arsenal reportedly tried to sign him last summer
Normally, I’m incredibly sceptical when it comes to any players at Juventus that we are linked with, but this one seems to have more than a grain of truth to it, not least because the Old Lady wants to get their grubby hands on Wojciech Szcesny for a handful of Euros and some biscotti.
Lemina has already said that he is flattered by the interest of Arsenal.
Sadly, the information that he is in talks with Arsenal comes from Tancredi Palmeri which automatically makes it suspect. I’d ask Palmeri about the whole thing but he blocked us on Twitter despite never having spoken to or about him. He does that, mostly to people who point out he gets all his news from Sky Sports Italia.
Lemina recently admitted that he will sit down for talks with Max Allegri before the new season starts. “I think before pre-season, we’ll have a discussion about that,” said Lemina, when asked whether he will be leaving.
“We’re going to talk to each other. We’re going to see what they really want to do with me and what I want to do in terms of how much playing time I’ll get.
“We’re going to put everything on the table and speak about it calmly.
“I learn alongside these players every day. We really have a well-stocked midfield with great names like Khedira, Pjanic and Marchisio.
“I learn a lot, I gain a lot of experience. But it’s true that next year, I have to play a lot more to be able to make a name for myself like they have.”
Marseille purchased Lemina from FC Lorient in 2013, paying £3.4m. Two years later they sent him on loan to Juve before the deal was made permanent last summer.
His contract runs until 2020 and a figure of £16m has been mentioned.