Luciano Spalletti has kept the door open to an Emiliano Martinez Juventus move after publicly discussing the Aston Villa goalkeeper.
However, the Juventus manager admitted that the Italian club must operate carefully because of its limited transfer budget.
Juventus want to add another goalkeeper to compete with Michele Di Gregorio and Mattia Perin before the new Serie A season.
Speaking after a pre-season victory over Standard Liege, Spalletti confirmed that Martínez remains under consideration.
“We want to add competitiveness and we are looking for another one,” Spalletti said.
“Dibu Martinez is one of them, who can probably change club, but we have to work carefully and prudently in the transfer market.”
Emiliano Martinez Juventus move faces major Villa obstacle
The comments were reported by GOAL, which claims Villa want between €10million and €15million for the Argentina international.
Juventus reportedly hope to pay no more than €5million or €6million. That valuation falls well below Villa’s position, while Martínez remains under contract until June 2029.
The goalkeeper is currently taking time away after Argentina reached the World Cup final. He was among the senior internationals unavailable during Villa’s early preparations, as explained in ReadAstonVilla’s Porto friendly preview.
Spalletti believes Martínez would add personality, experience and competition to his squad. Juventus have also considered Guglielmo Vicario, Zion Suzuki, Vanja Milinkovic-Savic and Noah Atubolu.
An Emiliano Martinez Juventus move still depends on the two clubs finding common ground. Spalletti’s admission that Juventus cannot spend heavily makes an agreement difficult unless Villa lower their demands.
Unai Emery will expect clarity once Martínez returns from his post-World Cup holiday. Until Juventus submit an acceptable proposal, Villa retain control of the goalkeeper’s future.
