Manchester City are considering a January move for Juventus midfielder Douglas Luiz, who had been an Arsenal target in the past.
David Ornstein reports for The Athletic that Manchester City are considering whether to add a midfielder to their heavy January recruitment, and one option is Douglas Luiz of Juventus.
Luiz was previously on the books for Aston Villa and City themselves, though work permit issues meant he never actually played for City during his first spell. Instead, he spent two seasons on loan with Girona.
After his move to Villa, Luiz was the subject of plenty of interest from Arsenal. The Gunners made three bids for the Brazilian international in 2022, but the deal didn’t happen, the player renewed his contract, and everyone moved on.
Luiz did eventually leave Villa for Juventus last summer, but he hasn’t really settled in. Six months after his move, the 26-year-old still only has 474 minutes on the pitch, the equivalent of a little more than five full 90s.
Part of that is due to an injury in October, but the rest is because only three of Luiz’s 16 appearances have been starts.
So a move is on the table, but there are complications. Ornstein reports that Juventus are willing to sell or loan with an obligation to buy, whilst City just want a straight loan deal.
Unless one of the club’s stances change, City may need to move onto other targets.
For the time being, Arsenal don’t look set to renew their interest in Luiz, and they’d likely also only want a loan move if anything. With substantial talk that Martin Zubimendi could be on the way in the summer, perhaps this ship has sailed.