Premier League giants Arsenal wanted to sign Manuel Locatelli back in 2021 with Sassuolo taking the financial hit of allowing the Italy international to seal a dream move to Serie A rivals Juventus instead.
The former AC Milan ace was a man in high demand three years ago, having played such a key role in Italy’s triumph at that summer’s European Championships.
Arsenal came calling. Though Manuel Locatelli – as a boyhood Bianconeri fanatic – only had eyes for Juventus. Sassuolo CEO Giovanni Carnevali was in no mood to wreck the midfielder’s dream move to Turin either, eventually accepting Juventus’ £32 million offer despite Arsenal making a bigger bid.
Arsenal wanted Manuel Locatelli before Juventus switch
“There are two footballers to whom I feel particularly attached,” Carnevali tells Radio Serie A. “Davide Frattesi (now at Inter Milan) and Manuel Locatelli. They are two guys that I tried to please at the time of the transfer.
“The economic side of a sale is important, but not decisive. For example, Locatelli absolutely wanted to go to Juventus. We satisfied him even though we gave up (some money) from an economic point of view, because there was interest from another club.
“Arsenal.”
At least, with Declan Rice blossoming into something of a Patrick Vieira-type figure for the modern era, missing out on Locatelli is not quite the disaster it could have been, Mikel Arteta’s title-chasing Gunners side reaping hte rewards of an excellent spell of recruitment under their highly-rated technical director Edu Gaspar.
Gunners now eyeing Dusan Vlahovic
Locatelli, meanwhile, is yet to win even a single Serie A title with Juventus. Milan and Napoli have claimed the Scudetto in the last two seasons while Inter are destined to finish top of the tree this time around.
“I still remember the negotiation (that took him to Juventus). For him it was very long,” says Mattia Locatelli, the playmaker’s brother, said at the time.
“There was also Arsenal. But he wanted Juventus.”
HITC Football understands that Arsenal are now in the market for one of Locatelli’s Juventus team-mates. £70 million striker Dusan Vlahovic, however, has indicated that he will stay to help Juve re-claim the Serie A title in 2024/25.
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