Juventus sporting director Fabio Paratici is reportedly trying to find a deal to prise Arthur away from Barcelona with a swap offer being touted.
The 23-year-old joined the Catalan giants in 2018 and has since gone on to make 67 appearances for the club as he’s contributed four goals and six assists.
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Given his age and the quality that he has shown thus far, the Brazilian international is arguably an important part of Barcelona’s long-term plan, especially when considering stalwarts such as Sergio Busquets, Ivan Rakitic and Arturo Vidal are on the wrong side of 30 and could start to play lesser roles moving forward.
That would leave Arthur and Frenkie de Jong as two key options in midfield for Quique Setien, but speculation continues to link the former with a move away from the Nou Camp.
As reported by Calciomercato, via the paper edition of Tuttosport, it’s suggested that Juventus chief Paratici is working on a player exchange with Barcelona for Arthur, in a deal which could see Miralem Pjanic move in the opposite direction, despite denials over such a swoop.
The tone of the report would suggest that there is hope as far as the reigning Serie A champions are concerned that a deal can be done, but time will tell if Barcelona are willing to green light an exit for Arthur.
Albeit Pjanic is much more established, is a proven winner and has shown his class consistently year in and year out for Juve, he is now 30 and so a straight swap would arguably make little sense from Barca’s perspective.
In turn, if they are keen to push for a deal, it would surely need money included too from Juve to convince their European rivals to allow a key figure in their squad to leave, as while Pjanic could provide a more immediate impact as his technical quality and passing ability could see him fit perfectly with Barcelona’s style of play, it would be a much more short-term approach given Arthur still has his entire career ahead of him.