Matias Siltanen already has an appetite for winning silverware, having won the league and league cup double with Kuopion Palloseura (KuPS) last year.
Such was the 18-year-old’s impact in the Veikkausliiga league, tackled by a dozen teams, that he was awarded the prestigious Veikkausliiga rookie of the year 2024 award.
The accolade prompted him to switch to the Swedish top tier, with Djurgarden having forked out €1.2m to land Siltanen last January on a two-and-a-half year deal.
Siltanen can be played in either central or defensive midfield, and is taking the Sweden Allsvenskan top-flight by storm with a clutch of leading European clubs following his development.
He was even called up by Finland for their summer World Cup qualifiers against Netherlands and Poland.
Juventus and Bayern Munich are now the latest sides to show serious interest in the twice-capped Finland U21 ace.
Juve seek young talent
The Bianconeri are not adverse to singling out youthful talent, with their scouts having unearthed such players as Vasilije Adzic, Dean Huijsen and Kenan Yildiz.
Adzic recently netted the winner for Juve in the thrilling Derby d’Italia against Inter Milan at the Allianz Stadium.
Huijsen was pushed out of the Turin titans, and now plies his trade in La Liga for Real Madrid following one season at AFC Bournemouth.
Turkish talent Yildiz is widely perceived as a future superstar. As contract extension talks have stalled, the 20-year-old could be snapped up by a European giant during the next two transfer windows.
In recent years, under both Thiago Motta and Igor Tudor, the club have sadly allowed numerous Juventus Next Gen graduates to leave.
It has been a meteorite rise to the top for Siltanen, having already won awards and trophies in Finland despite only signing his first professional contract in January 2023. Siltanen was included in the CIES Football Observatory’s 2024 list of the most notable U20 players in the world.
After just one appearance for KuPS U19, Siltanen was promoted to the reserves as a promising 15-year-old. His 26 appearances for the third-tier outfit earned the 2022 Boy Player of the Year award from the Eastern Finland FA.
Siltanen signed two contracts
Siltanen made his first team three months after putting pen to paper on a two-year contract with KuPS. After an unsuccessful trial with Danish club AGF in June, he scooped the 2023 Boy Player of the Year from the Finland FA.
Following consistently impressive displays during his 43 outings for the KuPS first team, he was snapped up for €1.20m on a two-year deal by Djurgarden last January.
Siltanen has played 29 times for Swedish high-fliers Djurgarden, and during the summer there were inquiries from Bournemouth, Leicester City, Manchester City, PAOK, RC Lens and Stade Rennais.
Juventus face a battle with German giants Bayern for Siltanen, although former admirers are likely to come back in for the rising star including mighty Manchester City.