It was a breakthrough season for Turkish talent Kenan Yildiz last term, finding his full potential under Thiago Motta and getting his groove back after Igor Tudor took over the managerial reins from Motta.
His meteoric rise even earned him a nomination for the coveted Ballon d’Or Kopa Trophy, where he finished fifth one place above former Juventus Next Gen team-mate Dean Huijsen who now plies his trade with Real Madrid.
Since Kenan made his senior Juve debut, under the then head coach Max Allegri during the 2023/24 campaign, he is fast approaching a milestone century of games for the Bianconeri.
He may not be the most prolific scorer, having netted 18 times, but is always a threat when pressing forward and has come up with 15 goal assists. He works wonderfully well with Dusan Vlahovic, producing slick attacking moves between the formidable pair.
His impressive impact in Serie A alerted a plethora of teams after his agent Jorge Mendes hyped Yildiz up for clubs to consider signing him last winter. Yet he preferred to focus on his career at Juve, following no concrete offers, and set his stall out that the Bianconeri was his only future.
Yildiz salary low compared to team-mates
The former Bayern Munich graduate was already approached for a Premier League switch before the 2024/25 season by Arsenal, but preferred to stay with Juventus despite pocketing an annual salary of just €0.5 million (US$0.6m) before bonuses.
Fast forward a year and he is a prized possession for the Bianconeri, who are aiming to extend his contract and dramatically increase his wages at least ten-fold.
Yildiz is viewed as a natural replacement and upgrade for Arsenal’s Leandro Trossard, Chelsea’s Facundo Buonanotte and a plethora of outcasts at Manchester United.
Although Yildiz could soon be offering him a lucrative contract by the Turin giants, it is known that he is considering a move otherwise he would not have offered himself to Barcelona during the summer transfer window. The La Liga champions have since expressed interest.
He is a big fish in a small pond at Juventus, with the physically demanding and fast pace of the Premier League would result in Yildiz being just one of numerous stars at any of the English giants.