Although the Bianconeri bought in Newcastle United’s Lloyd Kelly and Chelsea’s Renato Veiga for injured duo Gleison Bremer and Juan Cabal during the winter transfer window, the club have since expanded their search for young defenders.
Center-back Bremer and left-back Cabal have suffered season-long cruciate ligament injuries, with both going to need time to get back to full fitness and match sharpness.
Having missed out on a handful of defenders last month, Juventus continue to monitor Spezia’s Nicolo Bertola, Empoli’s Saba Goglichidze and Feyenoord’s David Hancko. While center-backs Comuzzo and Silva have also joined their wishlist.
There are Serie A rivals for Juventus’ summer transfer targets. Napoli are also seriously interested in Comuzzo, while AC Milan are very keen on Silva having tried in vain to sign him last month.
Comuzzo, a product of Fiorentina Youth Academy, failed to start any Serie A matches last term. This campaign he has impressed and become a regular starter for manager Raffaele Palladino.
His strong displays haven’t gone unnoticed. The 19-year-old was selected for Italy this season, although Comuzzo has yet to make his international debut.
Napoli boss Antonio Conte approved a €35 million (US$36.7m) bid for Comuzzo last month, but the deal stalled as the Tuscany team wanted more money for their emerging talent.
If Comuzzo can continue to thrive in Serie A, then a €45m (US$47.2m) price tag will seem like a real bargain for the youngster. If Juventus don’t swoop then other potential suitors surely will.
Portuguese international Silva is priced much higher, and contracted with Benfica until summer 2027. He has been slapped with a whopping €100m (US$105m) release clause, despite not being a regular starter under manager Bruno Lage at the beginning of the season.
Silva got an opportunity to impress Juve head coach Thiago Motta first hand inside the Allianz Stadium, when Benfica pulled off an impressive 2-0 Champions League triumph last month.
Juventus were keen on a loan move for the 21-year-old, but nothing materialised in January as the Portuguese giants were only open to a loan with an obligation to buy.
The back-up plan of bringing in center-back Kelly, who arrived from Newcastle on loan with an obligation to buy, may not have been the right decision as he has experienced a rocky start under Motta.
In stark contrast left-back Veiga has been a revelation for the Turin titans, but he will return to Chelsea in the summer.
The talented pair of Comuzzo and Silva appear to be costly acquisitions, yet Juventus are eager to introduce a summer overhaul as they bid to return to their former glory days of being annual Serie A title challengers.