Football transfer rumours: Arsenal to sign £34m defender Merih Demiral?

Maurizio Sarri would like to do some de-cluttering at Juventus this January. Perhaps he’s a fan of Marie Kondo and understands that a tidy workplace leads to a tidy mind. Well, that’s one theory The Mill has as to why he has despatched Juventus’s director of football to England to encourage Manchester United suits to take Mario Mandzukic off his hands. The 33-year-old has not played a minute for the Italian champions under Sarri and is blocking corridors and creating bad feng shui around the place. Some reports suggest he has already “packed his bags” in anticipation of a move to Alderley Edge.

Italian tabloids believe that Fabio Paratici may also have clear instructions to move conversation swiftly on to Paul Pogba once a cut-price deal for the brawny Croat has been agreed to lift the mood of United negotiators. The French midfielder’s contract expires in a little over 18 months and with no immediate sign that he’s about to ink a new deal, it could be time to ask Juventus how much cash they have.

Paratici might want to call in at the Emirates Stadium while he is in England. The word is that Arsenal are keen on helping Sarri with his de-cluttering exercise and are prepared to splash £34m on central defender Merih Demiral, who has played just once for Juve this season. The Gunners have sent scouts to Istanbul to watch the 21-year-old in action for Turkey against Iceland on Thursday, perhaps just to make sure he’s not another Shkodran Mustafi.

https://www.theguardian.com/football...-merih-demiral