Sergio Ramos prefers Serie A duo over Matthijs de Ligt at Real Madrid, Manchester United closing in on signing two Juventus stars and more Serie A news: 14 May 2019
Hello and welcome to the Serie A news and rumours of the day! As we head even closer to the summer transfer market, let's take a look at the top stories of the day surrounding the Italian league.
Massimiliano Allegri has a future plan for Juventus, dismisses exit speculation
Numerous reports have stated that the Italian manager is on the verge of quitting Juventus, following his failure to win the Champions League this season.
However, Massimiliano Allegri has rubbished all the speculation and insisted that he has been planning for the next season for six months already.
“I’ve had a clear idea in my head on what we needed to do since October. We don’t play with just 12 players, so we need to be versatile and have different options, all of that creates motivation and excitement.
“I am at an extraordinary club that has given me the great opportunity to train Juventus, but a new season begins and we have to be clear-headed. We have to set aside everything that has been and focus only on a clear analysis of how we start from scratch in a new season.
“It’s only normal that the team can be improved every year, but it above all has to be balanced and the club has done very well in that building process.
“You can’t have two centre-forwards and two who aren’t centre-forwards at all. I had three central midfielders for a while at Milan and everyone thought I was mad.
“Clearly, it’ll be much, much more difficult next season in both Serie A and Europe.”
Manchester United closing in on €142 million Juventus raid
The Red Devils seem set for a busy transfer period as the English side failed to win a trophy thisseason. Manchester United crumbled under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer late in the season after playing well during the Norwegian's first few months in charge of the club.
Manchester United have failed to qualify for next season's Champions League after finishing sixth in the Premier League table.
Now, it has been reported that United are closing in on Juventus duo of Paulo Dybala and Joao Cancelo. Dybala has failed to regain his form, following the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo last summer, scoring just five goals and providing four assists this season.
Manchester United are said to be the only team willing to match the Juventus' €100 million valuation for the Argentine star. On the other hand, Cancelo has endured a mixed season with Juventus as manager Allegri benched him for several occasions.
The Portuguese right-back played just five minutes against Roma in his latest Serie A match. The report also states that United are close to securing the the right-back for €42 million.
Sergio Ramos prefers Koulibaly and Skriniar at Real Madrid over De Ligt
Zinedine Zidane's return has not been enough to save Real Madrid's disastrous season. Los Blancos will end the season without a trophy as they have been knocked out from all the cup competitions and have lost the league title to arch-rivals Barcelona.
They are enduring a tough period recently, having won just two of their last five La Liga games. Barcelona-linked Matthijs de Ligt has is also on the radar of Real Madrid.
However, Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos is said to be against De Ligt's arrival as he feels the Dutchman lacks experience. The 33-year-old instead wants either Napoli's Kalidou Koulibaly or Inter centre-back Milan Skriniar to partner him at the heart of the defense.
Both Skriniar and Koulibaly are proven Serie A defenders. They are considered one of the best at their position and are valued at €100 million and €150 million respectively.