Ajax have been working on signing Juventus defender Daniele Rugani for several weeks now, but Al-Ain is reportedly trying to lure the player away.
The 30-year-old is one of several players who were omitted from Thiago Motta’s plans for next season. The list also includes Federico Chiesa, Weston McKennie and Wojciech Szczesny.
So in recent weeks, Ajax emerged as the favorites to land the former Empoli man. Multiple sources claim that the deal is almost done and the signatures could come this week.
Nevertheless, a new report casts some doubt on the operation while revealing a late twist in the tale.
According to Il Corriere dello Sport via JuventusNews24, Al-Ain is hoping to hijack the operation and bring Rugani to the United Arab Emirates.
The Roman newspaper claims that the Arabic club is willing to offer Juventus 3 million euros as a transfer fee.
And in order to entice the player, they are also offering a collaboration with his wife Michela who is an influencer on social media.
On the other hand, Tuttosport (via JuventusNews24) still expects Ajax to seal the deal.
The Turin-based newspaper claims that the Dutch club would be willing to offload Josip Sutalo once they finalize Rugani’s transfer.
The 24-year-old Croatian could head in the opposite direction but it separate deal.
Juventus are still searching the market for a new defender after missing out on Jean-Clair Todibo who ended up signing for West Ham.
