A small argument even broke out at the end. But Teun Koopmeiners got his way. As expected, the Dutch international moves within Serie A from Atalanta Bergamo to Juventus
The Italian record champions Juventus are continuing to upgrade for the project with new coach Thiago Motta – and things are particularly busy in midfield. After the promising transfers of Lilian Thuram’s son and Marcus Thuram’s brother Khephren (23) and the expensive Douglas Luiz (26), Teun Koopmeiners has now also been landed, as expected.
The 26-year-old Dutchman joins from reigning Europa League winners Atalanta Bergamo and brings with him the experience of 97 Serie A games (26 goals), 21 senior internationals (two goals) and an impressive 116 appearances, including 35 goals, in the Dutch top flight for former club AZ Alkmaar.
Wanted transfer, strike and deal
What Koopmeiners can bring to the Old Lady is obvious. The central midfielder with a penchant for attacking actions should boost – or rather: reignite – the attacking play of the Bianconeri teams, who have often been dismal in recent years. Also because Thiago Motta’s current squad only has striker Dusan Vlahovic (24, 90 competitive games for Torino with 38 goals), youngster Kenan Yildiz (19, two goals in just 27 Serie A matches so far) and joker Arkadiusz Milik (30) for the hunt for goals.
The fact that Koopmeiners’ transfer to Juventus ultimately worked out was also accompanied by background noise. The Dutchman, who joined the Bergamo side in 2021, had suddenly distanced himself from his Atalanta colleagues at the beginning of August
Coach Gian Piero Gasperini made it clear in an interview with L’Eco di Bergamo: “He already has a contract with Juve, he feels stressed and has decided not to train or play with us anymore. With this attitude, he can’t be useful for the club or for his teammates.” He continued: “The club has taken a very tough stance because he feels blackmailed by this situation.”
But now the matter has been resolved: Koopmeiners, who is still under contract in Bergamo until 2027, is switching sides and joining the 36-time title winners and record champions on a long-term basis, where he will receive a five-year contract (i.e. until June 30, 2029). Around 55 million euros will be transferred from Turin to Bergamo, partly because Atalanta insisted on such a high transfer fee. Bonus payments of up to six million euros could also be added. This makes the new Juve professional one of the most expensive midfielders in Serie A history to date.
