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Medhi Benatia could be on the move before the January transfer window comes to a close. Benatia, as we’ve been told, has an offer from Qatar — and possibly England — on the table, and it’s up to Juventus as to whether they are ready to see the 31-year-old defender head out and play football elsewhere.
So who could be the guy who comes to Turin to replace Benatia in Juve’s defensive ranks?
In pole position for his replacement is Martin Caceres, who played for the Bianconeri for a total of 5 seasons. Other options include Skrtel from Fenerbahce and Zenit’s Ivanovic. Another name is Bruno Alves, but Parma does not want to sell.
(Source: Gianluca Di Marzio)
Di Marzio’s report, which was released Thursday night, has also been confirmed by Goal’s Romeo Agresti.
Confermata la chiacchierata odierna tra la #Juventus e gli agenti di #Caceres, nelle prossime ore i bianconeri decideranno se affondare o meno il colpo @GoalItalia
— Romeo Agresti (@romeoagresti) January 24, 2019
Since departing Juventus after the 2016-17 season, Caceres has been with three clubs — Southamption, Hellas Verona and Lazio. He has been linked with a move away from Lazio over the course of the last couple of weeks, with some of the smaller Serie A clubs like Parma and Bologna. Nothing until now has developed, with Bologna seeming like the most likely destination up until a few days ago.
Now, with Juventus reportedly in the mix, it’s understandable as to why a move to Parma or Bologna could be stalling. It’s easy to understand why seeing as Caceres would have the chance to play a decent amount with Juventus taking part in three competitions as well as a possible deep Champions League run.
For Juve, they would get a player they know as well as anybody out there that could be brought in this month. And, given Caceres’ age, it’s not like they would have to spend a bunch of money for any kind of loan deal or permanent sale.