Juventus, the most prestigious team in Italy’s Serie A, is targeting midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, whose position at Tottenham Hotspur has been greatly reduced.
On the 4th (Korean time), La Gazzetta dello Sport, a leading Italian sports media outlet, reported, “Juventus wants Hojbjerg as a replacement for Paul Pogba.”
Pogba was provisionally suspended from the 2023/24 Serie A opener between Udinese and Juventus in August after testing positive for doping. The newspaper said, “Pogba, who must explain his positive doping test on Thursday (the 5th), could be subject to a ban of up to four years depending on the results.”
The fact that Pogba, who is 30 years old, cannot play for four years is practically a ‘death sentence’ as a soccer player. Therefore, the media selected Hojbjerg as a strong replacement with the comment, “Pogba’s anger will determine Juventus’s actions in the winter transfer market.”
‘La Gazzetta dello Sport’ predicted that financial space would be created, saying, “If Pogba leaves Juventus, Juventus can save about 30 million euros (about 42 billion won).” According to ‘Kapology’, a platform specializing in soccer finance, Pogba receives 190,000 euros (about 280 million won) a week from Juventus. Converted into annual salary, it amounts to 10 million euros (about 14 billion won). Since Pogba has a contract with Juventus until 2026, the calculation is that he can save 10 million euros per year for three years.스포츠토토
The newspaper continued, “We may bring in a new midfielder as soon as January.” “Hojbjerg is the best resource (to recruit),” he said, adding, “He is a player with excellent physical and foot skills.”
He is also “a great ‘box-to-box midfielder’ (a stepping stone midfielder who can deliver the ball based on his active ability in the midfield). And he is a player in his prime who can inject good energy into the team. Hojbjerg praised it and said that it is a resource that Juventus will consider as a priority.
In addition, Hojbjerg does not have much playing time, so there is a high possibility that he will fall for Juventus’ ‘sweet offer’.
“Hojbjerg has played just 78 minutes in the last seven league games,” the newspaper said, adding, “He will be keen to carve out an important place for his side as they look to play for the European Football Championship in 2024.” It was said that a new opportunity could be provided at Juventus for Hojbjerg, who has no place at Tottenham. However, it appears that it will be difficult for the Bianconeri (Juventus’ nickname) to win his heart, saying, “Hojbjerg is keeping silent despite Juventus’ love calls.”
Hojbjerg’s partnership with Tottenham ends in the summer of 2025. However, as Hojbjerg’s opportunities to play under Tottenham’s newly appointed coach Enzi Postecoglou are decreasing, it is expected that there will be a need to change teams to accelerate securing his position. The price tag put on Hojbjerg by Tottenham is about 28 million pounds (about 46 billion won).