Report: Juventus slash Merih Demiral asking price as Everton plot move
Everton have received a big boost in their bid to sign Merih Demiral with Juventus willing to slash his valuation, according to CalcioMercato.
The Italian news outlet claims the Blues are still watching the defender who has been repeatedly linked with a move to Merseyside, and his future will be decided after the conclusion of this summer’s European Championships.
Demiral made his international tournament debut for Turkey on Friday night, though it was one to forget as he made headlines for all the wrong reasons, as his own-goal was the first of the year-long delayed tournament. His side eventually crashed to a 3-0 defeat to Italy.
CalcioMercato’s report includes the assertion that the 23-year-old “will be sold” by Italian giants Juventus this summer, and that they are now willing to accept a lower fee than the £34.3million that they were originally demanding.
New manager Massimiliano Allegri is said to have identified Fiorentina defender Nikola Milenkovic as his replacement.
World was watching
Any Blues who spectated Turkey’s defeat on Friday night may have come away feeling a little underwhelmed by Demiral’s performance.
Turkey held out Italy for over 50 minutes in the Euro 2020 opener before Demiral sliced the ball into his own net, setting the Italians on their way to a comfortable victory.
With all eyes on him ahead of an expected Juventus exit this summer, it was the worst possible start for him.
However, we shouldn’t forget his impressive defensive duties before that unfortunate incident, while own-goals can happen to the very best players.
This recent report is encouraging as it suggests we wouldn’t have to pay north of £30million for his services, and that would likely be a figure the Blues board would baulk at.
For that sort of money we’d probably be expecting a more established defender who has made more than the 21 league appearances he has made in the last two seasons combined.
Regardless, he’s still an exciting talent, and one that could be pursued further. We’ll be keeping a close eye over his next two games to see how he reacts to Friday’s setback, and the success of that may well offer a strong hint as to his suitability for the Blues.
In other Everton news, the Blues are reportedly frontrunners to sign this ‘Sensational’ exit-bound star loved by Carlo Ancelotti.
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