Nicolò Zaniolo’s future is once again up in the air, despite Udinese having exercised their option to sign him permanently from Galatasaray for €5 million. The complication is one of the summer’s more unusual: the player expected a significant wage increase to accompany his permanent move — and it has not materialised.
Zaniolo is currently contracted at Udinese on €1.2 million per year — a fraction of the €3 million annually he was earning in Turkey. He had anticipated that the permanent transfer would trigger a renegotiation bringing his salary closer to his previous level. When no such offer arrived, the situation soured — and the consequences are now being felt across Italian football.
Juventus See Him as an Alternative to Brahim Díaz
According to Tuttosport, Juventus are monitoring Zaniolo’s situation with interest, viewing the former Roma and Galatasaray forward as a potential fallback option for the number ten position should their primary target, Brahim Díaz, prove impossible to secure. The Real Madrid playmaker remains Spalletti’s first choice as a trequartista — but with that deal entirely dependent on José Mourinho’s verdict after the World Cup, Juventus need credible alternatives. Zaniolo, operating in the same creative zone behind the strikers, fits the positional brief.
AC Milan are also reported to be watching the situation closely, adding a layer of domestic competition that could accelerate events.
A Familiar Story with a Familiar Player
Zaniolo is, of course, a name Juventus have circled before — and a player whose career trajectory has taken more twists than most. After a serious knee injury effectively derailed what had been a meteoric rise at Roma, his time at Galatasaray provided a degree of rehabilitation and renewed confidence. His season at Udinese was solid rather than spectacular — enough to prompt the permanent transfer, but apparently not enough to unlock the improved financial terms he felt his performances warranted.
For Carnevali, who has built a career on identifying players whose circumstances make them available at below-market value, Zaniolo’s contract dispute is precisely the kind of situation that rewards patient observation. Whether the bianconeri move concretely will depend almost entirely on what happens with Brahim Díaz in July — but for now, the door is ajar, and Zaniolo’s own frustration may yet do the rest of the work.
