This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…
According to the new report coming from Corriere dello Sport, Juventus are planning on bidding for Valencia’s youngster Ferran Torres as they are looking to add more young players into their squad. Interestingly, the 19-year-old, who has also been linked with Premier League side Liverpool in recent weeks, could actually solve the problem they have with their ageing flanks.
What’s the word, then?
Torres is one of the players the Bianconeri have been scouting for a while.
As per the same source the last time they’ve seen him in action was during his international display vs Macedonia, and they seem to like what the youngster has to offer.
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Of course, with his release clause set to €100m (£86m), he might not be a cheap option for the Italian giants.
That is especially apparent considering that both Liverpool and Barcelona have been prowling around the Spanish winger themselves, according to SportBild (via SportWitness) and Juventus might face some stern competition along the way.
But looking at what the talent can do and what the Bianconeri actually need, he might be worth the hassle after all.
Refreshing the squad
We’ve already discussed how targeting players like Tahith Chong would not really be beneficial for Juventus as they need to maximise their veterans’ last years at the top in order to finally make that push for European glory.
But this case is a bit different even though we’re talking about players of similar age who play in similar positions.
Torres is very much one of the next big things in the world of football and more developed than his Manchester United counterpart.
At the age of just 19, he has already played a total of 67 games for Valencia, bagging five goals and five assists in the process, and was the only Spanish player to be named in the 20-player shortlist for the Golden Boy award.
But even if we go beyond that, Juventus have an ageing problem with their flanks.
The likes of Cristiano Ronaldo – when he plays there – Douglas Costa and Juan Cuadrado are not getting any younger and Marko Pjaca and Federico Bernardeschi are not really of the calibre to successfully take over the mantle, at least not yet.
Torres is young but already has what it takes to play at the top level, which was evident from his stint with Valencia so far, and even has Champions League experience, scoring once in the two games he’s played in Europe in 2019/20.
His price tag and the competition by Liverpool and Barcelona might make it more difficult for Sarri to land his target, but he’s very much worth the trouble.
Which is exactly why the interest from the Reds, or the Blaugrana for that matter, doesn’t really come as a surprise.
Jurgen Klopp’s troops have an abundance of attacking firepower in their Mane – Firmino – Salah forward line, but even though it’s fairly early to make any big assumptions Torres very much looks like a player capable of providing competition – and perhaps even taking over the mantle – should he rock up at Anfield.
Despite their strength they don’t have a plethora of options or depth in attack, with the likes of Xherdan Shaqiri, Adam Lallana and Divock Origi the main back-up players should one of the brilliant trio of starting XI regulars miss out.
And with Torres’ rapid development and big-stage experience already in the bag he could be a welcoming addition to their squad, even at this point in his career, as his profile seems to match Klopp’s requirements – at least if we compare him to his current wingers who both possess pace and the finishing product.
On paper, Liverpool just might be an even better choice than Turin for a surname the fans will have fond memories of having seen Fernando score 81 goals in 142 games for them previously, but we’ll have to wait and see who ends up sealing the deal should the Reds and Juve both make their move.