No sooner has Dani Alves negotiated his release from Juventus ahead of a move to Manchester City than his soon to be former club identify the player they wish to replace him with.
News broke yesterday that the Brazilian full-back had verbally agreed on a move to the Etihad Stadium, cutting short his two year deal with Juventus and now, Bianconeri manager Max Allegri is looking to the Premier League to find himself a new right wing-back ahead of the new season.
According to Goal, Juve will look to Manchester United's Matteo Darmian to fill the void left by Alves.
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The Italian defender has become a target for Serie A rivals Roma and Internazionale, this summer, with both clubs hoping to secure a season-long loan move for the former Torino man.
Darmian ended up becoming a regular starter under Jose Mourinho, but only after United suffered several injuries to other key defenders. Image: PA
However, Juve may trump them both by making a permanent offer for the 27-year-old, who has failed to establish himself as a regular starter at Old Trafford and would reportedly welcome a move back to Turin.
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Darmian arrived at United in 2015, being brought to the club by Louis Van Gaal for £14 million. Despite a promising start, the Italian international has failed to convince and was displaced from his favoured right-back berth by Antonio Valencia, this season.
Due to United's defensive injury crisis during the second half of last season, Darmian was used as an auxiliary left-back, with Luke Shaw and Marcos Rojo both unavailable.
The Italian would end up playing an important role in the Red Devils' Europa League triumph, culminating with a 2-0 victory over Ajax in the final in Stockholm but it is believed that once manager Jose Mourinho has his full defensive contingent available to him again, Darmian may be surplus to requirements.
The Italian full-back put in a fine performance in the Europa League final against Ajax. Image: PA
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Given that Juventus operate the same defensive formation as the Italian national team, employing wing-backs to flank three centre halves, Darmian would slot effortlessly into Max Allegri's starting XI should Juve manage to secure a deal for the United defender.
Alves, meanwhile, is expected to complete his move to City within the next week, with Juventus set to imminently confirm to the stock exchange that his two year contract has been brought to a premature end.
Alves is expected to be confirmed as a Manchester City player within the next week. Image: PA
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The Serie A champions had been hopeful of securing a fee of £5 million for the Brazilian, but have now conceded that they will lose him for free.
(H/T Goal)
Topics: Manchester City, Dani Alves, Football, Manchester United, Juventus