Manchester United winger Adnan Januzaj has reportedly been identified as a target for defending Serie A champions Juventus according to tuttomercatoweb. The winger played a decisive role on Friday night, the 14th, in Manchester United’s fixture against Aston Villa, contributing the only goal of the game thanks to a well taken shot which took a deflection off Ciaran Clark. The match saw Louis van Gaal hand Januzaj his first start in six months and it was a much needed one for him, as the goal that he scored was his first since April 2014.
The rumoured bid comes as a somewhat of a shock, given that van Gaal opted to use Januzaj and he delivered; the start that the Belgian winger was given indicates that he may be a part of the Dutchman’s plans for the season.
Although Januzaj scored the only goal of the game, he was still taken off and replaced by Ander Herrera; following the match Louis van Gaal praised the goal but was still critical of Januzaj claiming that he wasted possession on the ball and lost it frequently.
He also hinted that he wanted the winger to work on his overall game stating: “I am fairly pleased because of his goal we have won, but there has to be more than only scoring a goal.” The match undoubtedly showed that Adnan Januzaj has much that he can contribute to team and if Juventus manage to take him from Manchester United it could turn out to be an excellent acquisition.
The winger made it clear that he wants to fight for his place at the club and by extension show why he should be on the starting line-up every week and the performance against will go a long way towards making that case.
Last season Januzaj found minutes hard to come by, as van Gaal tinkered with the formation many times; sometimes the winger found himself being played out of position and it was difficult for him to adapt. Januzaj enjoyed his breakout season in 2013-14 under David Moyes, where he made 27 league appearances and scored four goals; he managed to impress many people and was tipped to be a world-class talent in the future but he hasn’t been able to build upon that season.
In recent seasons Juventus has been on a recruitment drive that has seen them attract the likes of Sami Khedira, Mario Mandzukic, Patrice Evra and Alvaro Morata. The Old Lady is looking to improve upon a successful 2014-15 season, which saw them win the league and finish runners-up in UEFA Champions League with a run that saw them knockout, then defending champions Real Madrid.
Juve has made a statement of intent by purchasing such players as they look to be viewed as one of the stronger sides in Europe and there’s no doubt that Januzaj would be able to contribute to that.
In 2012 Juventus signed Paul Pogba, who was another United player brimming with potential and struggling for playing; he was afforded the playing time in Italy and has become recognised as one of the best young talents in Europe. Manchester United could face the same situation should they let Januzaj leave.
