Tuesday, May 03, 2011

Juventus Will Not Pay Liverpool £16m For Alberto Aquilani

Juventus will not pay Liverpool £16 million [€18m] to sign midfielder Alberto Aquilani on a permanent contract in the summer, according to sporting director Giuseppe Marotta.

The Italy international joined the Turin giants at the start of the 2010-11 campaign on a season-long loan from the Reds and has been in good form.

Juve have said on more than one occasion that they want to keep the 26-year-old beyond the summer but have once again refused to meet the English club’s valuation of the player.

Aquilani’s contract has a buy-out clause of £16m and Liverpool are reportedly asking the Serie A giants to pay the entire sum, a notion that the former Italian and European champions refuse to come to terms with.

“There is a buy-out clause that has to be activated by May 15,” Juve’s general manager Giuseppe Marotta told Sky Sport Italia.

“We’ll try to reach an agreement before the deadline. I can certainly say we will not sign Aquilani for the sum set by Liverpool.”

Aquilani himself has revealed his desire to remain in Italy, although Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish has suggested that the former Roma medio could return to Anfield at the end of the current season.

No comments: