The Jhon Lucumí pursuit has taken its most decisive step yet. According to Nicolò Schira in Tuttosport, Juventus and the Colombian centre-back have reached a broad agreement in principle on personal terms — a five-year contract at €2.5 million per season plus bonuses. Despite Nottingham Forest moving into the race and exploratory interest from Chelsea and Manchester United, Lucumí has not wavered. His choice is Juventus, and the agents of the 27-year-old have been in daily dialogue with Giovanni Carnevali, Frederic Massara, and Marco Ottolini to formalise that preference.
The significance of Thursday’s Milan summit at the Hotel Gallia — where Massara and Ottolini were spotted — is now clear: it was a meeting designed to advance exactly this kind of conversation. Lucumí’s representatives were among those present.
Why He Chose Turin Over Forest — and a Million Euros More Per Year
The financial sacrifice involved should not be underestimated. Nottingham Forest — who have been pushing for the defender with real conviction, even putting a figure of €20 million plus bonuses on the table for Bologna — were prepared to offer Lucumí approximately €1 million more per year in wages than Juventus are proposing. By any standard, that is meaningful money.
And yet the Colombian turned it down. The reasoning is equally meaningful: the prestige of Juventus as an institution, the certainty of competing in European football, and the prospect of continuing to develop in Serie A — a league in which he has thrived — all weigh more heavily than the wage differential. He was struck by the determination shown by the Juventus hierarchy throughout the courtship. And his World Cup tournament, in which he delivered what Tuttosport’s Schira describes as “performances of a defensive totem” — most memorably shutting Cristiano Ronaldo out of the game entirely during Colombia’s victory over Portugal — has confirmed that he is ready for exactly this step.
Spalletti, who watched every one of those World Cup performances with growing conviction, has made his request loud and clear: Lucumí is the defensive profile he wants. The manager’s admiration is unconditional.
The Bologna Obstacle — and the Cabal Solution
The one remaining structural difficulty is the club-to-club negotiation. Bologna president Joey Saputo’s hierarchy are asking at least €25 million for their defensive centrepiece — a price that, whilst justified by the player’s quality, begins to look commercially aggressive given that his contract expires in just ten months. Juventus’s first offer stood at €17 million — rejected without hesitation by Sartori and Di Vaio, who are holding out for more.
The creative mechanism Carnevali and Massara are preparing to deploy is the inclusion of Juan Cabal as a partial makeweight. The Colombian left-back, considered surplus to requirements at the Continassa after a difficult period, would bring down the cash element required whilst providing Bologna with a versatile, experienced defender who knows Serie A. The structure of a combined cash-plus-player operation could bridge the gap between the two clubs’ positions without Juventus committing to figures that strain their financial constraints.
The Pressure of Time — and Bologna’s Real Position
Bologna know they are not dealing from strength. A year ago they rejected a Sunderland offer of €23 million plus bonuses for Lucumí. Now, with the contract clock running down to its final months, their leverage has diminished significantly. The spectre of losing their defensive leader for nothing next summer is one that concentrates the mind. International auction or not, the rational outcome is to accept a fair offer now rather than risk a humiliating free exit in June.
Juventus understand that dynamic entirely — and are pressing accordingly.
