Juventus avoid Dean Huijsen mistake with decision on £87m Chelsea, Arsenal and Man United target

Juventus have made a statement of intent by securing the future of the club’s brightest young star wanted by the Premier League’s elite.

That is the view of European football expert Andy Brassell, who believes Kenan Yildiz has made a shrewd decision to stay in Turin.

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The 20-year-old, who arrived as a free agent after leaving Bayern Munich‘s youth team in 2022, has become Juve’s most valuable asset.

The winger has flourished in a more central position under Luciano Spalletti and has now signed a long-term contract until 2030.

Yildiz boasts 12 goal contributions in 23 Serie A games this season, having scored eight times while providing four assists as well.

According to reports in Italy, Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool all made contact with his representatives late last year.

However, the £84million-rated star, who had also been linked to Real Madrid, has now become one of Juventus‘ highest-paid stars.

“It’s a relief to the club, there’s no doubt about that, because they see him as their present and future,” Brassell told talkSPORT.com.

“There’s no doubt about that. Now I think from Kenan Yildiz’s perspective, I think he’s a really good choice to stay.

“I think he’s the smart choice to stay because he’s 20 years old, and he’s still developing.

“Now, in terms of football, I think it writes itself because I think everyone still looks at contracts that say 2030, and he’s just extended by a year in exchange for a quite decent pay bump, which once Dusan Vlahovic is off the books will make him the highest earner on Juventus’ books, which is no mean feat at 20.

“But 2030 is not that long, really. I mean, he’ll be 24 by the time that contract expires, if indeed it goes to term.

“In the meantime, Alessandro Del Piero has anointed him as his own successor, and successive coaches have given him the keys to the team.

“At such a young age to have that, it’s a privilege, but a privilege that he’s ready and able to accept. So he gets the opportunity to develop.”

From Juventus’s perspective, it also means not losing out on another potential promising star to the Premier League like Dean Huijsen.

The 20-year-old quit the Old Lady to sign for Bournemouth for an initial £12.8m in 2024, having been loaned to Roma the year prior.

Yet following a standout 2024/25 campaign for the Cherries, Huijsen then sealed a record £50m switch to Real Madrid last summer.

Brassell added: “If you’re saying that, maybe this isn’t a great idea for Yildiz, you would use past evidence of Juventus not really developing young players. But they’ve made a pivot in the last couple of years.

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“I think if you look at the staff and directors that they’ve recruited and the sort of players that they’ve recruited after that, it’s about trying to make Juventus get younger.

“They’ve leant hard on the next-gen model, and I think Yildiz is a correction of some of the mistakes they’ve made in the recent past.

“So you look at the fact that Dean Huijsen was one of the better young defenders in Europe, and they let him go for next to nothing.

“Everyone else has got profit and made money off him, notably Bournemouth.

“You look at Matias Soule, who is turning into a key player for Roma and is going to be even more of a key player for Roma once [Paulo] Dybala has gone at the end of the season.

“There’s a lot of voices in the fan base that are saying, ‘What have we done letting those guys go for nothing?’ And they spent, for example, a lot on Lloyd Kelly to replace, to fill the hole of Huijsen, when I don’t think many people would argue he’s a better player.

“Even though Lloyd Kelly has had an improving season, Huijsen’s further down the line, even if he’s younger. I don’t think there’s any doubt about that.

“So I think to empower Yildiz and make him important is great.”

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Juventus chief executive Damien Comolli, formerly of Liverpool and Tottenham, hailed Yildiz as a key part of the project to restore the club’s status as a European powerhouse.

The 26-cap Turkey international, who is the youngest foreigner to score for Juventus in Serie A, still has so much more to offer.

“I think you have to look at the fact that he is a young Turkish superstar,” Brassell continued to talkSPORT. “And with that, there’s so much commercial opportunity, so much platforming opportunity.

“If he’s got his own team around him and a high-profile team within Europe, I think that’s very helpful. I don’t know why at 20, unless it’s for the money, you would throw yourself into the Premier League and think, you’ve got to basically start again.

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“You’ve got to learn a whole new style of football. You’ve got to find a team that you fit into.

“Are you going to play every week because it’s so physically exacting? Maybe not.

“There are so many unknowns that at this point, in terms of his development on both a sporting and commercial level, going to, say, a Chelsea, a Manchester United or an Arsenal would be a massive risk for him.

“He shouldn’t be in a rush. I think he’s managing his career well.”