Former Barcelona director Ariedo Braida has said that Miralem Pjanic is keen on returning to Juventus this summer.
The Bosnian left the club in 2020 as part of a financially amicable exchange with the Catalans that saw Arthur Melo arrive in Turin. The midfielder, however, failed to cement a place in Ronald Koeman’s youthful XI as Pedri, Frenkie De Jong and Sergio Busquets were favoured over Pjanic. The 31-year-old earned just 619 minutes of La Liga action across 19 appearances.
Pjanic’s subdued start to life in Catalonia combined with the club’s woeful financial situation has rendered him disposable this summer and the return of Massimiliano Allegri has sparked rumours, that certainly have legs, of a possible Turin reunion.
Pjanic wants return
The Bosnian’s desire for a Juventus return has been manifested by a rather unknown source. Ariedo Braida is a former Serie A journeyman but is probably best known for being the right-hand man of former AC Milan CEO Adriano Galliani for almost three decades. He then became Barcelona’s sporting director in 2015 but was relieved of his duties in 2019.
Nevertheless, it’s Braida who’s confirmed Pjanic’s intentions.
“I met him [Pjanic] three or four days ago in Barcelona. We met by chance near the Camp Nou and we talked. Pjanic told me that he would like to return to Juventus. Allegri certainly knows him better than anyone,” he said to Tuttosport (via Calciomercato).
Are Juventus interested?
While Pjanic is keen on a return to Turin, Juventus’ interest in the player isn’t as clear cut. Nevertheless, Allegri remains an admirer despite the player’s obvious decline since the Italian coach left the club and Tuttosport (via BarcaTimes) claim that Juve will pursue the Bosnian after they’ve wrapped up a deal for Manuel Locatelli.
It’s certainly not a matter of Locatelli or Pjanic, although the former remains the overwhelming priority. Fabrizio Romano reported on Friday that while the Bosnian is expected to leave this summer, Juve are solely focused on Locatelli for the time being.
Allegri, meanwhile, was asked about Pjanic following Juve’s pre-season victory over Monza on Saturday night. However, he used to question to wax lyrical over Aaron Ramsey, who played in an unfamiliar defensive midfield role against the Serie B outfit.
“I don’t know about that,” Allegri told Mediaset regarding a potential Pjanic reunion.
“The club takes care of the transfer market, we talk every day. Ramsey played very, very well in front of the defence and I think in that role he can really become an important player.”
“I salute Mire because we spent four years together with great victories. He is a Barcelona player now, we have talented players, and I think if Ramsey can be convinced to play in front of the defence, he can really do well there. He already can see passing channels, has a good sense of the geometry of the field and can also rest on the ball more than he does up front,” he added.
The situation will become much clearer once an inevitable deal for Locatelli is concluded.