One of the breakout talents in Serie A this season is not allowing all the speculation over his future cloud his vision. Then again, maybe that should not come as too much of a surprise.
With all due respect to Crystal Palace and Southampton – two clubs HITC understands are chasing the Argentina international – Matias Soule has found himself the centre of the attention from far bigger clubs in the recent past, Juventus fighting off competition from a who’s who of European superclubs when winning the race to sign the then-Velez Sarsfield wonderkid back in 2020.
Soule, speaking to ESPN, details the sheer extent of the interest that was being shown in him four years ago. Flash forward to April 2024 and, following a stellar loan spell at Frosinone in which he has even been likened to Diego Maradona after curling home a sublime free-kick against Cagliari, the 20-year-old winger probably has another summer of speculation to look forward to.
But, at this stage, he is more than used to the rumours.
Crystal Palace and Southampton like Matias Soule
“At the beginning it was difficult to accept coming here (to Italy),” explains Soule, who has also been compared with Paulo Dybala and models his game on that of Lionel Messi. “But now I feel very comfortable.
“That’s what I was looking for, to play and demonstrate my abilities. (Juventus and I is) a good match.
“There were other teams like Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Benfica. I chose Juve for the history, then there was Cristiano Ronaldo. An easy choice.”
While Ronaldo may be the past these days, sold to Man United back in 2021, Soule could be the future of the Bianconeri. HITC understands that, even if Juve do opt to cash in on the £30 million-rated Soule, a player with ten goals in Serie A this season is likely to have his sights set far higher than the perennially mid-table Crystal Palace.
Oliver Glasner’s side looking at wingers
HITC have been told that Southampton are also keen on the one-time Barcelona target. But if Soule has reservations about joining Oliver Glasner’s Palace outfit, it almost goes without saying that Southampton’s hopes look slim, even if Russell Martin can guide the Saints back to the big time via the play-offs.
It seems unlikely, meanwhile, that Juventus would consider a swap deal involving Soule and Carlos Alcaraz.
The Southampton-owned midfielder joined Massimiliano Allegri’s side in January. But after starting only two of a possible nine league matches, Juventus may not be rushing to trigger a release clause which could see Alcaraz join for an overall package of over £40 million.
HITC, meanwhile, have been told that Crystal Palace are also eyeing up another Juventus-based winger. England Under-21 ace Samuel Iling-Junior is an option. Eagles boss Glasner is keen to bring in two of Austria’s rising talents, meanwhile, in Rapid Vienna duo Leopold Querfeld and Matthias Seidl.
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