Key Atalanta defender, Merih Demiral, is expected to remain at the club, according to Fabrizio Romano. Demiral spent this past season on loan with Atalanta from Juventus, although La Dea have an option to buy the player. The option stands for €23 million and the club plans on executing it. The Turkish defender will join the club on a permanent basis shortly.
Atalanta have not changed their plan for Merih Demiral: the intention is to trigger buy option for around €23m from Juventus. ⏳🇹🇷 #transfers
Demiral will join Atalanta on a permanent deal soon. pic.twitter.com/0WRUdTBbzC
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) May 23, 2022
Key Atalanta Defender is Not Leaving
Major News for Atalanta
Atalanta have been a surprise in Italian football in recent years. They’re attacking prowess, paired with consistent defending, always posed a threat to the best teams. Atalanta could keep clean sheets but also score multiple goals whenever needed. Due to this, they were qualifying for the UEFA Champions League against all odds.
This season, however, was rather disappointing for their recent standards. The club finished in eighth place, failing to qualify for Europe. It’s not necessarily a surprise that teams like AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus, and Napoli finished ahead of La Dea, but other clubs such as AS Roma, Lazio, and Fiorentina leapfrogged Atalanta.
Due to this, turnover may have been expected in Bergamo. Atalanta made it to Serie A just over a decade ago and play in a stadium with a capacity of just over 21,000 spectators. Clubs of this size rarely qualify for Europe in major leagues, let alone manage to keep their top players. For this reason, it’s major news that Demiral will remain.
Demiral is only 24-years-old. He appeared in 28 matches for Atalanta this season, starting in nearly 60 per cent of them. He also appeared in six Champions League and six Europa League matches. Atalanta clearly acknowledges his defending abilities. At his age, Demiral is only expected to get better from here.
This decision also presents a blow to Juventus. The club is losing one of their top defenders and could have used Demiral next season.
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