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When I wrote the season ratings for Juventus’ three goalkeepers last month, I wondered what the club had planned for youngster Emil Audero. He had spent the previous two seasons as Juve’s No. 3 keeper, having made his debut in the final game of the 2016-17 campaign against Bologna.
We still don’t know where Audero may fit into Juve’s long-term plans. But we now know what he will be up to next season.
The 20-year-old Audero will be getting some valuable playing time in Serie B next season, as Juventus announced that the former primavera product will head out on loan and play at Venezia. It will be the chance to be a regular starter for the first time in three years since he was one of the handful of talented youngsters on Juve’s primavera team that captured the Primavera Coppa Italia a few years ago.
Here is the announcement from Juventus’ official website:
Juventus Football Club can announce that Emil Audero will be playing on loan at Venezia during the 2017/18 season.
The talented goalkeeper, aged 20, now has the opportunity to develop his game in a competitive league such as Serie B and optimise the experience gained over the last two campaigns with Juventus’ first team, for whom he made his debut this year against Bologna.
Starting from the 2013/14 season, Audero built a burgeoning reputation between the sticks off the back of his consistently brilliant performances for the club’s Primavera side, winning the Super Cup in the process.
Upon promotion to the Bianconeri first team in 2015, he has gone on to win two Scudetto titles, two Coppa Italia crowns and an Italian Super Cup.
Everyone at Juventus wishes Emil all the best for the coming campaign.
As of right now, Juventus currently has one goalkeeper on its roster from the three that appeared in games last season. That is somebody you have heard of before. His name just happens to be Gianluigi Buffon.
It’s been a summer of movement outside of Buffon for Juve’s other two goalkeepers from the previous two seasons. Just on Friday, Neto finalized his move to La Liga side Valencia where he is expected to be a starter. And now, with Audero heading out on loan, Juve’s goalkeeper ranks are going to look a lot different than it did just a few weeks back when the season came to an end.
The backup spot is expected to go to Wojciech Szczesny whenever his deal with Arsenal is finalized. That’s obviously something that has repercussions beyond just next season. Who is behind both Buffon and Szczesny as the No. 3 keeper, while obviously not Juve’s biggest need of the summer and nowhere close to it, still remains to be seen.
And when it comes to Audero, I hope that the opportunity to play is something he takes full advantage of next season. Even if he doesn’t become a starter at Juventus, it will be nice to see a youth product who has been fully understanding of his role the last two seasons return to the club and potentially have success in the future.