New Juventus manager Luciano Spalletti has failed to keep a clean sheet in his opening two matches, and has a strong interest in acquiring Manchester City’s Nathan Ake.
The Netherlands international needs regular minutes to impress Dutch boss Ronald Koeman in order to be able to cement his place ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals.
Ake, signed by Pep Guardiola’s side from AFC Bournemouth for €46.6m (US$53.7m) five years ago, is a versatile player. He can be utilized as a center-back, left-back and as part of a three-man defence.
Igor Tudor stuck to his predictable tactical approach of using three at the back, and Spalletti has followed suit in his opening matches against Cremonese and Sporting Lisbon.
Spalletti's versatile tactics
Yet Spalletti is renowned for setting up his team in order to tackle each opponent, so the 4-3-3 formation that helped secure Napoli their 2022/23 Scudetto is expected in the near future.
Ake would be an asset for the Bianconeri, although Manchester City are not actively looking to sell him although are believed to be open to offers during the winter transfer window.
A figure around €30m (US$34.6m) could be enough to lure Ake from the Etihad, as he is only a bit-part player this season.
This appears to be a bargain transfer fee, which has alerted a plethora of European giants including Serie A sides Juventus and Inter Milan.
Juventus are frontrunners for Ake
German Bundesliga, La Liga and Premier League teams have shown serious interest in adding defensive depth during the second half of the season. Yet Crystal Palace and Juventus appear to be in pole position to land Ake.
Koeman has warned a number of his squad that they are at serious risk of not being included in the World Cup squad if they are failing to regularly feature for their club, which is highly likely to include Ake.
Spalletti inherited a lightweight squad, and is keen to shore up a shaky defense. Tudor was never able to sort out Juve’s backline vulnerabilities, despite Thiago Motta having ensured that there were enough players for a solid back four.
Gleison Bremer and Juan Cabal, two pivotal defenders, are currently sidelined because of injury. Although Spalletti does have some alternatives, which include former international Daniele Rugani, to add steel to his backline.