Juventus: Merih Demiral frustrated with lack of minutes
Juventus center back Merih Demiral is one of Serie A’s best defenders, but he hasn’t been playing much in recent weeks.
Because Juventus have two veteran pillars of the club at the center back position in Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci and then two great young talents in Matthijs de Ligt and Merih Demiral, they have a bit of a conundrum when it comes to finding minutes for one of those players.
Like Bonucci, de Ligt’s spot in the lineup is locked in, so it is Demiral who ends up drawing the short end of the stick in Turin.
Demiral was excellent for the Bianconeri at the beginning of the season, starting in a back three alongside Danilo and Bonucci or Chiellini with de Ligt injured. But now that de Ligt is back and Andrea Pirlo has been making more use of a 4-4-2, Demiral’s minutes have waned. He has not played a single match in a month.
Don’t expect Merih Demiral to leave Juventus this winter, though
According to a report from Turkish outlet Fanatik, Merih Demiral is not happy with his lack of game time at Juventus and may be contemplating a move. The report states that the Bianconeri would ask for a fee of 50 million euros in exchange for the 22-year-old defender.
Juventus beat reporters, including Giovanni Albanese and Mirko Di Natale, acknowledge that Demiral would like more minutes, but they also state that both the club and the player have no intention of a transfer.
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It is important for Juve to find ways to get Demiral on the pitch. He is far too talented to languish on the bench, and I have already presented the case for him to start over Bonucci. Demiral and de Ligt can be world-class center backs in Turin for years to come, and Juve must prioritize BOTH players instead of only de Ligt. He may be the more heralded of the two, but Juventus have to value both young center backs highly and show it.