TURIN – They call him “DiGre Man” because he has feline shots and eyes that tell a story of ambition, hunger and the desire to overcome one’s limits. Michele Di Gregorio, Inter school, is Juve’s chosen one for the re-foundation starting from the posts. The interest and polls of recent months were followed by the acceleration of the last few hours, once Thiago Motta’s informal approval had been obtained and above all after Giuntoli understood that Szczesny had no intention of reducing his salary and renewing but would even be inclined to leave football once the relationship with the Lady ends, in 2025. Di Gregorio costs 20 million (payment can be deferred), relations with Galliani’s Monza are excellent and this time the Bianconeri seem really intent on digging into their wallets after two transfer sessions with zero spending. Once the hardest phase of the economic diet has passed, thanks to the money arriving from the Champions League and the Club World Cup, as well as from the seasonal results in Italy, the technical director can finally operate with a defined budget. And so, after the low-cost arrivals of Weah, Djaló and Alcaraz, the goalkeeper’s move will become his first real shot. With an overall sustainable salary: from 2.5 to 3 million net per season, for 5 years.
Di Gregorio best goalkeeper of the season
By a curious crossroads of destinies and timing, yesterday Di Gregorio was named best goalkeeper in Serie A – ahead of Szczesny and Carnesecchi, another profile evaluated by Juve but considered out of budget – and he found out this just as he was preparing for this afternoon’s match at the Stadium. Due to an injury, he will leave the posts to deputy Sorrentino. Away from the pitch, Di Gregorio could still savor his first sensations as a Juventus player by, among other things, making a gift to Inter who have already earned 4.2 million from the redemption of Monza in July 2022 and could now collect another 2 million for a retainer of 10 % on resale. Di Gregorio’s season was superlative: in a defense that has often suffered, conceding 49 goals, the Brianza number one is the goalkeeper with the most saves in the league, 127, fifth in number of clean sheets (12) behind Sommer (19), Milinkovic-Savic (18), Szczesny (15) and Skorupski (13).
Juve, here is the future of Szczesny and Perin
Speaking of Szczesny, what will become of one of the last symbols of Juve’s winning cycle? The 34-year-old’s contract expires in 2025 like Perin’s – Mattia is destined to say goodbye – and the salary is decidedly high: 6.5 million. The company offered him a two-year extension at lower prices so as to continue to reduce the salary of the squad; a strategy similar to the one that led to the agreement with Rugani and which is inspiring the (very complicated) negotiation with Vlahovic. In Wojciech’s analytical and concrete mind, however, everything seems already written and somehow planned. After leading Poland to the European Championship, being decisive on penalties in the play-off against Wales, the goalkeeper announced his upcoming leave from the national team: «I will stop after Euro 2024. There is no point in starting this new cycle, it is better to leave the task to others». Today the same thoughts accompany him but in black and white, where he has put down roots since July 2017. Upon completing his eighth year as a Juventus player, the boy from Warsaw could put his gloves back in the drawer. One last season as assistant to a younger goalkeeper (Di Gregorio is 8 years younger) and then goodbyes: even Buffon, before living a second youth in Parma, followed this same path.
