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Juventus' search for a defender has apparently brought them to Portugal. Benfica, in particular, if you wanted to make a big deal about every single detail. And if that rings a bell, that's because Benfica was the same team that prevented Juve from making the Europa League final a home game at Juventus Stadium last season. So, if you have some pent up anger in their direction, that could be why.
Also a distinct possibility: If you want Juventus to sign Luisão, then Benfica totally (temporarily?) putting the brakes on any kind of move might also put some anger into your body. According to Gianluca Di Marzio, Benfica hasn't taken a liking to Juventus trying to sign their 33-year-old captain and central defender from Brazil.
Or, in simpler terms...
Benfica answered negatively to Juventus' request for Luisao.
Well, that's not good. Let's read further...
The president spoke to Benfica TV: "We are not negotiating with Juventus, Luisao has three years left on his contract and therefore if Juventus want him, they will have to contact us. In his last interview, Luisao said that he wanted to close his career here and this is what will happen." Clear words that indicate that Benfica are not willing to satisfy the player and let him go for free.
Ohhhhhh, major drama! Drama, drama, drama! I feel like I'm in high school again! Tell me more...
The Portuguese club was annoyed by Juventus' strategy, which reached an agreement with the player first. If Juventus really wanted Luisao, they'd need to reach an agreement with Benfica, which are resisting. They are furious with the player and his agent, who swore that he would have stayed for good at Benfica.
The way this summer mercato has been for Juventus, are we all that surprised that something like this could be going on? I mean, in a world where there's buyback clauses for brand new signings, Max Allegri managing Juventus, a couple more loan-with-option-to-buy deals, and Marco Motta still being on the roster, seeing another club get mad at Juve for approaching a player is pretty entertaining. Or maybe it's not depending on how you feel about Juve potentially signing Luisão, who knows.
Either way, Juventus' attempt to sign a player who means so much to Benfica was never going to be easy to begin with. Now, with such shenanigans happening on Thursday, the uphill battle to pry him away from Benfica became only that much more of a tough task. Good luck, Beppe and friends, you're going to need ... it on this one if in fact you still want to sign him.
We could all just sit back and watch the developments on all this. Or we could just do a Google search for the latest and most facepalm-worthy Arturo Vidal transfer rumors. It's your choice, people, so don't feel pressured to do either one.
