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What's the story?
Juventus have established complete dominance in Italy, having won 6 Serie A titles in a row. The Italian giants are set to begin yet another season this weekend as they take on Cagliari in their first game this weekend.
The Bianconeri have lost Leonardo Bonucci and Dani Alves this summer but have secured reinforcements in Federico Bernadeschi, Juan Cuadrado, Medhi Benatia and Wojciech Szczesny.
However, Massimiliano Allegri is believed to be on the hunt for a strong and tall central midfielder and could launch a £22.5 million bid for Manchester United's Marouane Fellaini, according to reports in The Sun.
In case you didn't know...
Juventus are said to be in pursuit of Paris Saint-Germain's Blaise Matuidi as a partner for Miralem Pjanic in the Juventus midfield. However, PSG's reluctance to sell Matuidi has prompted Juventus to train their sights on Manchester United's Fellaini, whom Allegri sees as an appropriate bulwark in the heart of the Juventus side.
Marouane Fellaini had been subject to rumours linking him with a move to Turkish side - Galatasaray, until Jose Mourinho publicly admitted the Belgian's importance and subsequently said that Fellaini will not be sold this summer.
The heart of the matter
The Serie A champions have lost Paul Pogba and Arturo Vidal over the past couple of summers and are looking for someone to fill in those ginormous shoes. With talks over Matuidi seemingly defunct, Allegri could fully focus his attention on Marouane Fellaini.
The surprise 3-2 loss to Lazio in the Italian Super Cup is understood to have served as a wake up call among the Juventus hierarchy, who are now looking to wrap up the transfer window with a flourish. The champions will look to make a move for Fellaini, should they fail to push a deal through for Matuidi.
Fellaini made 47 appearances in all competitions for the Red Devils last season, albeit as a substitute on most occassions. Despite Fellaini's prolonged time on the bench, Mourinho has categorically dubbed Fellaini to be extremely important to the English side.
The arrival of Nemanja Matic from Chelsea, however, is bound to park Fellaini on the bench more permanently, suggesting that Fellaini and Manchester United might soon open up to the possibility of the Belgian's sale.
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Author's Take
While it seems unlikely that Manchester United will let Fellaini go, Juventus will do everything they can to procure the Belgian, who could be an effective solution to Allegri's woes. The 29-year old is tall, strong and everything that Juventus want.
Should Juventus succesfully snatch the Belgian, they will certainly consider themselves reinforced for the forthcoming season.
