Teun Koopmeiners’ desire to join Juventus, as announced by Gian Piero Gasperini, has caught many by surprise. This sudden turn of events has left Atalanta feeling “blackmailed”, but what led to this situation?
Despite being under contract until June 2027, it has been common knowledge for months that Juventus had already agreed to personal terms with Koopmeiners. The Dutch midfielder made it clear that he would reject any other offers from clubs like Inter, Napoli, Liverpool, and Tottenham Hotspur.
The hope was that this transfer saga would be resolved quietly behind the scenes. However, Gasperini’s recent revelation to L’Eco di Bergamo newspaper that Koopmeiners will no longer train with Atalanta because of his desire to move to Juventus has brought this issue to light.
In late March, Koopmeiners confirmed to Dutch media De Telegraaf that he had requested to leave in the summer if the right offer came along, despite the club’s denial. Fans were already aware of Juventus’ involvement, as evidenced by chants during Europa League celebrations. The asking price for Koopmeiners was around €60m, but the only offer so far has been €40m plus €5m in bonuses.
With the new season approaching, Koopmeiners decided he could no longer wait for the clubs to reach an agreement and attempted to push the transfer through. Unfortunately, this move has cost him the opportunity to play in the UEFA European Super Cup clash against Real Madrid on August 14 and has overshadowed the progress he made under Gasperini’s guidance.
