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Randal Kolo Muani To Juventus | Can PSG Flop Rescue Champions League Football? (Clip From Ep. 486)
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After Juventus snap up Randal Kolo Muani from PSG and Alberto Costa from Guimaraes, Nima Tavallae and Carlo Garganese debate and discuss how these signings will fare as well as analyze Cristiano Giuntoli's work overall at Juve.
This is a clip from the weekly Thursday episode of the Italian Football Podcast.
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Transcript
Introduction to the Italian football podcast
00:00:03
Speaker
Welcome to the Italian football podcast.
Can Kolo Muani save Juventus' season?
00:00:05
Speaker
Before we talk about Atalanta, let's talk about Randal Columwani because he is somebody that Juventus management, Mota and Juventus fans will will be praying and hoping that he can be the man that but changes around their season and and gets them into that top four, gets them into Champions League qualification, which if they don't do, is a complete disaster for the project and sets them back so much sports in the financially. It would be a complete disaster if they don't get in the Champions
Details of Kolo Muani's loan to Juventus
00:00:35
Speaker
League. um So, Colum Moani is, by the time that everybody listens to this, it might even be official. he's He's agreed on a loan until the end of the season, a dry loan, no buy option.
00:00:48
Speaker
clause from PSG. ah He undergoes a medical test, I understand, on Wednesday um and then hoping to train for the first time um on Thursday. So by the time you guys listen to this, he might be it might be official. um And Motta kind of wants him to be available to play already on Saturday against Milan in that in that massive game.
Juventus' striker crisis and reliance on Kolo Muani
00:01:11
Speaker
Wlawicz is out with a, well,
00:01:13
Speaker
allegedly with a muscle injury. There's a lot of conspiracy theories that maybe he might not be injured, but we don't know if he's going to be available for that game. Probably not. I don't know. um but so But yeah, I mean, listen, Juventus needed a forward. ah Desperately, they've they've, because of Juntly's failings, they've gone the entire first half of the season with just Flavic as their only available striker obviously he's injured so the last two games they played without a striker and they have done before that so they needed a striker they've brought in Columwani is the guy that comes in so there'll be no Joshua Zirksi now um and it's you know he's this season has been well it's been a disaster for Columwani he's played only 453 minutes of football
00:01:56
Speaker
two goals in all
Kolo Muani's career journey and expectations at Juventus
00:01:58
Speaker
competitions. He did score three goals for France in the nation's league. He's played a bit more for them. ah He played against Italy and when in the game that France won in Italy to when they finished top of the group. um He's a player that I really liked at Frankfurt. I have to say I really did like him. um He has the pace, he has the dribble, he's very unorthodox kind of running style. He's tall, very tall player, over six foot, I think six foot two, but he's very kind of languid the way that he runs with the ball and quite difficult, um quite difficult, kind of a bit kind of Faustino Espria kind of the way that he runs with the ball, kind of difficult to to stop when he goes into his dribbling. Really good at Frankfurt, scored 26 goals in 50 games for Frankfurt, so kind of like one in two and that got him the 90 million pound move to, 90 million euros move to PSG in the summer of 2023.
00:02:50
Speaker
it's not worked out there at all. um He's failed. 11 goals in 54 games in all competitions and this season has been a disaster. I mean, Luis Enrique gave up with him quite a few months ago and they've been trying to yeah offload him for January and they have now. um So yeah really, Juventus have to kind of pray that they kind of get the Frankfurt column one and not the the PSG
Kolo Muani's role and versatility at Juventus
00:03:12
Speaker
one. I mean, I think the strengths of him is He's versatile. He can play right wing, left wing and in the centre. When I've seen him play, I've generally seen him play more on the wider roles. um He has moved kind of centrally more, kind of like later on in his career. you enter The thing is, Juventus need him in the centre. That's where Juventus need a player to come in and make the difference, to bring the goals, to be able to link the play, to do all the things that Vljovic hasn't been able to do.
00:03:38
Speaker
so Juventus have to pray that that's what he does because that is where Juventus really really are lacking and hope that he can bring in some goals because Juventus are lacking goals and they are lacking creativity.
Low financial risk of Kolo Muani's loan for Juventus
00:03:50
Speaker
Long term there's not risk involved in this in the sense that it's a dry loan so financially I think Juventus will patch pay the rest of his salary after the second half of the season but there's no there's no kind of financial risk in terms of a fee long term so they'll can see how he does and then take it from there.
Importance of top-four finish for Juventus and Kolo Muani's impact
00:04:07
Speaker
But obviously, the risk is, as I said, Juventus need to finish in the top four. And if they don't, financially, that is a disaster for the club. um So they need more. I need to hit it off. This needs to work for Juventus badly. um So I guess we'll see. But they you know this is that this is who they're going on. This is who they're putting their trust in.
00:04:26
Speaker
Well, they it's they don't have that much money to spend. And they if they are going to spend any money, they're going to have to spend it elsewhere in central defense, for example. um And that's why this is what they can do. This is what they can muster. um And they're probably just going to, you know, they'll probably pay his wages. He draws joins on a dry loan.
00:04:46
Speaker
It's basically kicking the can down the line until the summer. um it's I mean, I'm not his biggest fan, but I'm not his a detractor either. I think he's a decent player. I think he can do something for you with it. I think he most definitely offers more to how Mota wants to play than Vlawic does, for sure.
00:05:08
Speaker
um who's just been dreadful in open play this season and for large parts of his entire Uwe career. um So I think it's, you know, they need the numbers. And so, you know, it's it's one of those things where I think it's OK. I don't think it's fantastic. I don't think it's bad. I think he suits the system. But we'll have to wait and see, you know, how
Benefits of Kolo Muani's loan for all parties involved
00:05:32
Speaker
this actually plays out. But I do think that you know they they need the I'm glad they got this done because they they would there was brick they would not be able to to go to to to finish in the top four with without reinforcements. It really is that simple. They are that depleted and the summer transfer window was was half finished if that um given the failings of Louis and so on. It's it was was worse than half-finished. So there is that. um So no, I think this is a this is an intelligent kind of
00:06:08
Speaker
You know, it's it's it's ah it's a marriage of convenience. Let's put it to you that way. It's a marriage of convenience for Juve. It's a marriage of convenience for PSG, who don't lose control of the player. And it's a marriage of convenience for Colomuani, who will definitely get playing time and and gets to play at ah at a big club and in the Champions League. um So everybody wins.
00:06:28
Speaker
Yeah, well, Juventus fans will be hoping so.
Juventus' signing of Alberto Costa and financial aspects
00:06:31
Speaker
Alberto Costa, I mean, Juventus have been busy ah today, we all the last 24 hours. um They are about to announce a new sign. Again, this might be official by the time you guys listen. Alberto Costa, who um has agreed to join for around 13 million euros um from Vitoria in Portugal. He was a complete unknown and said a few months ago.
00:07:01
Speaker
um i did speak to I finally did speak to a Portuguese journalist about him um um from Robona TV, our friend from Robona TV. and he He told me ah not too much more other than he's like he was basically an unknown until October. He he exploded in October, November. um So he there's a very short sample size there, um which I guess is a bit of a risk, um but it's you know I think it's a scouting move. it's is you know it's a short story It's a small sample size. They're basing it basically on a couple of months.
00:07:41
Speaker
Yeah, but what's so does this mean? How do you how do you pronounce it? Or how do you pronounce his name? Or how is unconnected from Ronald Orajo from from Barcelona says unconnected, you know, Orajo is a centre back event as I'm trying to sign a centre back as well, at least one. And they are saying financially, like, how does this impact their ability to sign? No, I don't think I think I don't think I haven't done the maths, but um I don't think this will, I think this is just a basically, on on the books, on the accounting books, this is basically a straight replacement for
Juventus' struggles with defensive signings
00:08:16
Speaker
Danilo. Now, Danilo, even if he goes on a free transfer, Danilo's salary is is big. I'm not sure what it is. It must be about at least four million a year, five million a year, something like that. It might even be more than that. um So that's that's coming off the books, like four, five million every year. It's coming off the books, however much he's getting.
00:08:34
Speaker
is coming off the books. Alberto Costa, I don't know what his salary will be, but it will be tiny. It's probably like one million a year if that. um So, you know, you put a five-year contract, um you you spread that out, the the transfer fee and the salary over over the over the the five years and it's going to probably be less than the Neelos.
00:08:56
Speaker
ah cost on the books. So I know Danilo was going to leave this year. So I guess but you know that there's that. But what what I'm saying is in terms of it's not going to cost them much on the books this and because of his salary being low and he spread it over. So I don't I don't think it's going to affect.
00:09:13
Speaker
um much. um The Araujo transfer though it seems has fallen through because Barcelona have convinced him to stay.
Critique of Juventus' transfer strategy
00:09:20
Speaker
um So you and again have to go to the drawing board um and look for another censor back. and Again, Giuntoli, this is, you you so you have 50 million to spend in January but you couldn't pay that for Calafiori who you really needed and in the summer. I'm sorry but this is stupid.
00:09:40
Speaker
Well, I don't know if they've got that much. I don't know if they've got that much. Yeah, but we still didn't get him. I mean, it's, it's, it's well, I think the criticism of California. Yeah, I agree with you. It comes down to kind of how they spent their money in the summer, i didn't they? Like we've, we've, yeah, but if you still got that amount of money to spend in January for a central defender, it would have been smarter to spend that in the summer.
00:09:58
Speaker
Well, yeah, of course, of course, but then you still end up not getting the player. The criticism here is we're in the middle of January now halfway during the January transfer market. And they've had since October when, when Bremer did his ACL, they've had three months, um over three months now, to, to, to sign a centre back to get everything done and ready and prepared. And now we're at the middle of January.
00:10:22
Speaker
And the top the player that they're going for, Araujo, is now suddenly in the middle of January ah revealed that he doesn't want to join Juventus and he's going to stay at Barcelona son and probably sign a new contract there. And now Juventus are back to square one and they're looking at alternative targets. I mean, that's, you know, as I said, last, yes, on Monday or was it last week, you know, that's just that's fake That's just poor from juntily. You've had three months. you know You should have got to the January market and you already got your centre back. It's already done because you've been in talks with it for months about it. You shouldn't be in the middle of January and now you're scrambling around. um it's it's it's It's not good enough. It's not good enough at all.
00:11:01
Speaker
Oh, I'd say most of the overwhelmingly most of the things big calls he has made has been not good enough to put it mildly. But um it is what it is. Let's wait and see until the end of January if what he what he can do this window and if he can do anything.
00:11:19
Speaker
um But that's too that's still too late for me. You know, the players should have been in at the beginning of January and they should have been able to play these massive games. You know, Juventus playing, ah you know, this huge match against Atalanta, then against Milan, then against Napoli. These three games, you know, OK, for the morning might be available, but he's going to be going in there with basically two one or two training sessions, which is not good. These players should have been in at the beginning of January.
00:11:42
Speaker
They should have done. You had three months, mate. Two months, two and a half months. It should have been in by January. It's not good enough. Not good enough. I'm sorry. ah Too late. um You know, but he has to do something anyway.