Juventus Transfer Market Focus Shifts to Midfield Changes. Hojbjerg Out of the Picture
Juventus keep working on Mateta, rule out Hojbjerg and monitor McKennie’s future as Spalletti looks to fine-tune his midfield.
Andrea Locorotondo
Updated on 16 January 2026
Juventus Transfer Market Dominated by Mateta Talks
The big story in the Juventus transfer market right now is definitely Mateta’s move from Crystal Palace.
Everyone is keen to finalize the deal, whether they do it now or in June before next season.
But it’s also true that Spalletti’s project needs a few tweaks in midfield.
Hojbjerg Door Closed, Other Options Evaluated
Pierre Hojbjerg is definitely not one of them.
His agent, Luca Puccinelli, has definitely closed the door on a transfer of the Danish midfielder to Juventus in January:
“Pierre’s 100% focused on Marseille. He wants to stay, do his best for the club, and is totally focused on the project. Pierre wants to do something special at Marseille.”
Hojbjerg’s been in the running for a while, so it looks like he’s out of the running for a spot in Juventus’ midfield. Unless something crazy happens at Marseille in the next few hours.
That means Juventus can now focus on other players who could help Spalletti’s project.
McKennie Future Under the Spotlight
Even though Napoli are interested in him, Fenerbahçe have reportedly offered Youssef En-Nesyri to Juventus.
The young Moroccan player, who’ll be in the Africa Cup of Nations final tomorrow against Senegal, is worth €22 million, but his transferable status could mean interested clubs pay much less to get him from Fenerbahçe in this transfer window.
Weston McKennie’s position could also change. As we know, the American’s contract renewal is still on hold, but Spalletti thinks he’s an important member of the squad because of his versatility.
McKennie’s recent performances have caught the attention of a few European clubs though. One of them is Simeone’s Atlético Madrid, which is probably the perfect coach for the 1998-born midfielder of the US national team.
The Spanish club is said to be thinking about making an offer for the player as early as January.
Juve is looking at McKennie in the €11-€12 million range, and they’d have to think seriously about selling him, given the tricky contract situation.
Andrea Locorotondo
Andrea Locorotondo is an Italian sports journalist. He has been living in the UK since 2015 and he is accredited by the SJA and AIPS. In addition to his role as contributor for FootItalia, he has demonstrated his ability to effectively cover a range of positions in sports journalism. Former Sportitalia TV journalist back in 2014, he is currently employed as a data journalist for Opta and Sportsdata. He is the team leader of Italian commentators at GBVision. He collaborates with EA Sports and frequently appears as a guest on Italian radio and television shows, including RDS Serie A TV and La Fiera del Calcio, where he shares his insights as a Premier League expert.
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