Paris Saint-Germain striker Edinson Cavani has refused a contract extension from the Ligue 1 giants and Juventus have reportedly turned their attentions to Javier Hernandez in a bid to replace Alvaro Morata.
Since his arrival at the Parc des Princes in the summer of 2013, Cavani was never been able to establish himself as the main striker ahead of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He always found himself being played on the right or left by Laurent Blanc, rather than his preferred central striker position.
Now that Ibrahimovic has left Paris and signed for Manchester United, Cavani is the only recognised striker at the club. But, years of frustration seem to have taken their toll on the 29-year-old and according to Le10Sport, the Uruguayan talisman has refused to sign a contract extension.
Cavani’s current contract runs till 2018 and Juventus and Atletico Madrid are reportedly interested in the Uruguayan. Despite being played out of position for the majority of his PSG stint, El Matador has racked up 81 goals in 148 appearances and guided them to 10 trophies in the past 3 years. At the age of 29, the striker may be past his peak, and PSG will likely cash in on their striker if he refuses to sign a contract extension, in the hopes of recovering some of the estimated €64 million which they paid for him in June 2013.
Juventus target Hernandez
Aside from Edinson Cavani, PSG have now also been linked with a move for Javier Hernandez. According to a report in MARCA, the former Manchester United striker is now a target for the Biaconeri as they try to replace Alvaro Morata, who has left for Real Madrid.
The report states that Juventus, who were initially looking to bring Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez back to the Serie A, have given up on those hopes after being told that the Chilean wouldn’t be available, and since then their attention has been turned to the former Manchester United attacker.
After falling out of favour at Old Trafford, Hernandez was sent on loan to Real Madrid, before being sold to Leverkusen for an estimated €7.3 million. Since moving to Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2015, the Mexican has been in stellar form for the Werkself Neverkusen. He has scored 26 goals in only 40 appearances for the German side, helping them to a third placed finish in the Bundesliga. He was also named as the Bundesliga Player Of The Month thrice in his first season.
It is going to be difficult for the Germans to keep a hold of their star striker given his brilliant form last season. But a move to Juventus would again see him come up against the likes of Mario Mandzukic and Paulo Dybala for a starting spot and more time on the sidelines isn’t something that the Mexican would want.
Even with strikers like Dybala and Mandzukic present in their ranks, Juventus are still looking to strengthen their squad for the upcoming season. Having already added Dani Alves and Miralem Pjanic to their ranks with Mehdi Benatia soon to follow, the Biaconeri seem to be making some shrewd signings and in all the right areas. This is testament to their desire to become a top European superpower after missing out on the Champions League a year ago and further establish their dominance in the Serie A.
