Man Utd on alert as Juventus boss reveals chances of dramatic Adrien Rabiot U-turn

Juventus head coach Thiago Motta has approached the subject of Adrien Rabiot potentially signing a new deal with the club despite being released at the end of last season, amid his links with a move to Manchester United.

Rabiot remains on the lookout for a new club and has recently been the subject of renewed speculation about interest from Manchester United, who tried to sign him two years ago and now have another chance to add him to their squad by taking him out of free agency.

But recent reports indicated that Man Utd may struggle to match Rabiot’s wage demands, which appear to have priced him out from a return to football at this stage.

Still unattached, it has now been brought up that Rabiot could reverse his decision to leave Juventus by belatedly agreeing new terms with the Serie A side.

However, Motta has denied any contact with the Frenchman, insisting he chose to go down a ‘different’ route.

“He hasn’t called me,” Motta said at a press conference on Friday. “I love him as a boy and a player but he took a different path.

“I wish him success in finding a team where he can be happy and express his talent.”

Motta and Rabiot reunion seemingly off

While Motta only took charge of Juventus in the summer, meaning he never got the chance to coach Rabiot, they do have history together.

Indeed, they were teammates at Paris Saint-Germain – the last club in Motta’s playing career and the first in Rabiot’s – between 2012 and 2018, making 109 appearances alongside one another in midfield.

Therefore, it is understandable why the topic of Motta reintegrating Rabiot at Juventus may have come up.

When Juventus lured Motta away from Bologna in the summer, Rabiot commended the appointment, saying: “Thiago is a great coach who has done great things since he has been coaching in Italy.

“We played together for four or five seasons at PSG, and we know each other well, but his arrival is not decisive in my choice.

“Thiago Motta has his career and I have mine, but what he has done and in particular this year with Bologna, from a playing and work point of view, makes me think that he is an excellent choice for Juventus.”

And after all, Rabiot took his time committing to Juventus last year as well. His contract was due to expire on June 30, 2023, and it took until three days before that for him to sign an extension covering the 2023-24 season.

But with the 2024-25 campaign now underway, Rabiot won’t want to waste too much time before resuming his playing career.

Man Utd planning midfield revolution

The transfer window is now closed in most major footballing countries, meaning free agents like Rabiot are the only remaining players those clubs can pick up.

Links with a move to Man Utd resurfaced on the back of speculation that Casemiro could depart for the Turkish Super Lig, but that never came to pass.

Man Utd are now expected to entertain a 2025 exit for Casemiro, and with Christian Eriksen set to be let go next year too, it has led to the Red Devils being linked with other potential midfield recruits such as Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze and Adam Wharton, as well as Middlesbrough’s Hayden Hackney and Dinamo Zagreb’s Martin Baturina, who has been dubbed the ‘next Luka Modric’.

In other positions, they have also been linked with Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper Unai Simon this week. But in reality, it will take time to discern which are the most concrete objectives Man Utd are working towards for the January transfer window or next summer as their squad continues to evolve.

As for Rabiot, it remains to be seen how long it will take him to find a new club, and if that isn’t Man Utd, how long a contract he could sign that could potentially take him out of reach for good.

Assessing Rabiot’s Juventus career

Although Motta didn’t explicitly state the door is closed for Rabiot to return to Juventus, his comments seemed to indicate that the 29-year-old’s future will be with another club. But what can Rabiot take forward from his five years in Italy?

Controversy was never too far behind Rabiot. He ran down his PSG contract to seal a free move to Juventus in 2019, before only scoring once in his debut season in Serie A.

When Man Utd tried to sign him before in 2022, it was after his third season with Juventus, during which he scored no goals at all.

But in fairness to Rabiot, he has improved since. Ironically, that goalless season was followed by the most prolific one of his career, as he scored 11 goals during the 2022-23 campaign.

Rabiot’s fifth and final season saw his tally drop somewhat, but he remained a more effective player than he had shown previously.

He left Juventus with 22 goals and 15 assists from 212 appearances, having won Serie A during his debut season and later lifted the Coppa Italia twice.

It’s fair to say Rabiot won’t be remembered as an all-time great at Juventus, but he managed to restore some respect for his ability and it is a shame that he has not yet been able to secure a new club where he can continue to express it.

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