Randal Kolo Muani has explained why he snubbed Manchester United and Tottenham to join Juventus.
United have been long-time admirers of the Paris Saint-Germain forward. He was on their shortlist in the summer of 2023, only for him to join PSG from Eintracht Frankfurt in a deal worth around £88million as United snapped up Rasmus Hojlund instead.
As reported by the Manchester Evening News, Kolo Muani was back on United’s radar this month as they look to bolster their flailing front line. Another struggling side, Spurs, were also believed to be in for the 26-year-old.
However, inspired by the string of legendary Frenchmen who have also played for the Serie A giants down the years, he has decided to head to Italy instead. Kolo Muani will spend the rest of the season in Turin, with Juventus paying a loan fee of £834,000 (€1m), plus additional costs of £2.1m (€2.6m)
Explaining the reasons behind his decision, he said via Tuttomercatoweb: “I’m happy to have arrived at a legendary club. I’m proud to wear this shirt and play for these fans.
“Among the many French players who have written the history of Juventus, I can’t help but mention [Zinedine] Zidane, but also [David] Trezeguet. Coming to more recent times, I would say Paul Pogba and obviously Khephren Thuram, who is doing very well here.
“I had a long chat with the manager [Thiago Motta]. He told me about his playing ideas and convinced me to sign. I can’t wait to start training and get on the pitch.”
Kolo Muani, whose loan could become permanent in the summer, said he was open-minded about his role in the team, adding: “Playing is enough for me, I'll do it wherever the coach asks me.
“If I really have to choose, I'll say centre-forward because I think it's the role where I can express myself best. I know that Serie A is a very difficult championship, where I think I'll like to test myself.”
Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou addressed the club’s interest in Kolo Muani earlier this month. The Australian said: “We’ve been interested and were looking at a number of players, but did we get to the point where we thought he was coming to us? No.”