Genoa essentially confirm Juventus are interested in signing Mattia Perin

We’re likely entering the last couple weeks of Gianluigi Buffon’s storied Juventus career, which means that there will not necessarily be the pressing need for a new starting goalkeeper but at least somebody to deputize next season.

Maybe, just maybe, Beppe Marotta might be casting a wider net.

According to the words out of the mouth of Genoa president Enrico Preziosi, Marotta has discussed the possibility of Juventus signing the 25-year-old Perin this summer. No, really. Even with the current situation where we’ve all just assumed that once Buffon retires it’s Wojciech Szczesny’s starting job and that’s that, it appears that Juventus might be in the market for more than just a cost-friendly backup goalkeeper. And his name could very well be Mattia Perin.

Sez Preziosi:

“It’s true, in the last Lega [Serie A] meeting in Rome, Marotta stopped me and said we had to talk about Mattia. Now I’m waiting for a phone call so we can sit at a table. Becoming Juve’s No 2? I don’t know, but he’s such a good goalkeeper, that he’d be a waste. Juve, among others, must hurry up because Napoli also want him and negotiations could start soon.”

Source: Football Italia, via juvenews.eu.

First there was that, now there is this present with context:

This is not a situation where we’re comparing a man of Buffon’s age to somebody that is current in their mid-20s like Perin currently is.

Is there a difference between a Szczesny at barely 28 years old and Perin at 25? I’m not sure it’s all that noticeable, if any at all. And it’s not like Szczesny signed with Juventus without any kind of knowledge of the situation this season or how life in Italy and Serie A is.

(Plus, come on, I’ve spent all season trying to get the muscle memory of typing “Szczesny” and I finally got it, so let’s not do anything crazy now.)

Maybe this is just Beppe checking in to see what Perin might cost. Maybe there’s something to it beyond just having Woj as the full-time starter in goal next season. Maybe we’re just reading into this way too much because we’re all completely anxious for this roster to be improved.

But, when it comes to transfers, a big-time goalkeeper signing isn’t one I’m necessarily expecting. And it’s not like Perin isn’t going to have any suitors this summer, so he’s not going to come cheap by any means no matter who ends up signing him.