Joshua Zirkzee: From Manchester United Fringe to Juventus Priority

Joshua Zirkzee has slipped down the Manchester United hierarchy – and Juventus are moving fast to turn his Old Trafford frustration into their gain.

The Italian giants have made the 25-year-old their leading centre-forward target after abandoning a move for Randal Kolo Muani, with a loan deal and £30million option to buy on the table. Talks with Paris Saint-Germain over Kolo Muani dragged, the price never quite aligned, and patience in Turin snapped. The search for a new No9 switched direction in an instant.

Now all roads point to Zirkzee.

From fringe at Old Trafford to priority in Turin

Zirkzee’s stock at United has dipped sharply. Across last season, under both Ruben Amorim and Michael Carrick, he started just five Premier League games. For a striker signed for around £36.5m in 2024 and once billed as a long-term focal point, that’s a brutal comedown.

His numbers tell their own story. Nine goals in 75 appearances for the club. Patches of promise, but no sustained run, no sense of a forward trusted to lead the line week after week. Behind Benjamin Sesko and Mateus Cunha in the pecking order, and with Marcus Rashford potentially returning to the fold, the pathway to regular minutes has narrowed to a sliver.

United know it. Zirkzee knows it. Juventus are ready to exploit it.

Crucially, United are prepared to accept a loan with a £30m buy option, even if it means crystallising a loss on their initial outlay. Club officials view that figure as a realistic reflection of his current value after a stop-start spell in Manchester.

Juventus pivot after Kolo Muani collapse

Juventus had initially set their sights on Kolo Muani following his underwhelming loan at Tottenham. The logic was clear: a proven France international, surplus to requirements at PSG, potentially available if the numbers lined up.

They never did.

Negotiations with PSG stalled, the asking price stuck, and Juventus grew increasingly uneasy about wasting a crucial summer window locked in talks that refused to move. With Dusan Vlahovic having left on a free transfer and Jonathan David struggling badly in front of goal – just six goals in 35 Serie A appearances last season – the urgency to reshape their attack intensified.

The pressure finally told. Juventus walked away from Kolo Muani and turned decisively to Zirkzee.

Among the clubs circling the Dutchman, Juventus have emerged as the most serious. Roma retain long-standing interest, but the pace and intent from Turin have shifted the landscape. Luciano Spalletti’s side have moved quickly, and that speed has made them favourites for his signature.

A striker who knows Serie A – and wants it back

For Zirkzee, the move makes sense on several levels. He knows the league, the rhythm, the tactical demands. One season on loan at Parma, two at Bologna: enough time to understand what Serie A asks of a centre-forward and how his game can thrive there.

He views Italian football as a better tactical fit for his style – a forward who likes to link play, drift into pockets, and combine, rather than simply attack space in behind. Confidence has drained at United; the goals dried up, the starts disappeared, and with them the belief that Old Trafford is the right stage for this phase of his career.

The Allianz Stadium, by contrast, looks like an opportunity. A fresh system, a league he respects, and a club desperate for a focal point. It is no surprise, then, that Zirkzee is keen on the move and open to anchoring Juventus’ rebuild up front.

Those close to the talks say his representatives have responded positively to Juventus’ approach. The structure of the deal suits all parties: Juventus secure a low-risk look at a striker with Serie A pedigree, United protect some of their investment with a realistic buy option, and Zirkzee gets the one thing he has lacked in England – a clear role.

A crossroads for club and player

Juventus need goals. United need clarity in their forward line. Zirkzee needs a stage where his talent is trusted, not merely rotated.

If this deal crosses the line, it will not just close a chapter of unfulfilled promise at Old Trafford. It will test whether a return to Italy can unlock the player many expected Zirkzee to become when he first arrived in Manchester – and whether Juventus are backing the right No9 to drag their attack into a new era.