That could see Miralem Pjanic put forward as a possible makeweight, with the Bosnia & Herzegovina international having now turned 30 and his contract not due to expire until 2023.
Despite Juve’s interest in Arthur, Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba remains the ideal summer signing, while there have also been links to Chelsea midfielder Jorginho – who worked with Sarri at Stamford Bridge and during their time at Napoli.
Brescia midfielder Sandro Tonali is another who is on Juve’s radar although the Italian champions recognise that there is widespread interest in the 19-year-old and the club’s owner, Massimo Cellino, is likely to prefer a sale abroad for big money.
Juve’s desire to acquire a new midfielder is borne out of frustrations over a lack of goals from that area of the pitch, with there having been a reliance on Cristiano Ronaldo, Paulo Dybala and Gonzalo Higuain further forward.
Indeed, Aaron Ramsey has been Juve’s top-scoring midfielder with four goals although he has yet to fully convince Sarri that he is the long-term solution, prompting the Bianconeri to look at alternative options in the transfer market.
From Barca’s perspective, there is a desire to balance the books at the club and thus the sale of at least one of their high earners is a priority.
Philippe Coutinho has been offered to clubs in the Premier League – given his lofty wages and the fact he’d still command a significant transfer fee – and the playmaker, who is currently on loan at Bayern Munich, is more likely to leave than Arthur.(Goal.com)