Italian teams in Serie A are, as of now, not beating the allegations that they are all broke bois. According to Gianluca DiMarzio on his website, Juventus are still negotiating with Tottenham Hotspur over Spurs’ (former) starting keeper Guglielmo Vicario. This has been going on for quite some time, but according to DiMarzio, The Old Lady is now trying to see if they get Vicario on a loan-to-buy deal, rather than an outright purchase.
Here’s the gist: Juventus were counting on a short-term one season loan for Japan World Cup star Zion Suzuki, who looks set to sign with Paris Saint-Germain. PSG were apparently willing to loan Suzuki to Juventus for the season, giving them time to work out a more permanent solution to their goalkeeping issues. That deal appears to be fading, according to DiMarzio, and Juventus are heading to plan B — Guglielmo Vicario. But they want him, at least initially, on loan rather than an outright sale.
As hilarious as it is to call Italian teams broke, there’s probably a deal to be made here if Spurs and Juve can work out the details over payment, loan fee, and structure. It’s not the first, nor will it be the last, time that Spurs have sent a want-away player to their future club on an initial loan deal. The key point, obviously, is in the details — if Juventus want a dry loan, that’s not going to serve Spurs well, unless they’re willing to punt for a year and try and sell Googly Elmo all over again next summer. If there’s a purchase obligation (preferred) or a purchase option (less preferred), I think we could probably see a deal here.
Vicario is not in Roberto De Zerbi’s plans and they’re already going with Antonin Kinsky as their No. 1 keeper, with Martin Dubravka as his backup. Spurs are going to want a solution sooner rather than later, as will Juventus. It’ll probably come down to how much commitment Juventus are going to want, and whether that suits Spurs or if they start shopping Elmo around to other clubs in Italy.