Juventus pushing for ‘ambitious’ swap deal for Liverpool forward

Juventus are pushing for a swap deal that would see Adrian Rabiot and Roberto Firmino move in opposite directions.

The Italian side is open to selling the French midfielder and have set their sights on the Liverpool forward or even potentially midfielder Naby Keita.

Rabiot, 27, is entering the final year of his contract and could follow Dybala in leaving for free when his contract runs out next summer.

But according to Calciomercato, he’s being eyed in a swap deal for Keita or Firmino – both of whom enter the final year of their contracts at Liverpool.

Firmino has been a star man for the Merseyside club since joining in 2015; scoring 98 times and assisting 74 goals in 327 appearances whilst going on to win every trophy available at club level.

However, now at 30 years old, he’s seen his game time reduced due to the arrival of signings Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz, as well as Klopp’s insistence on playing former red Sadio Mane down the middle for the majority of last season.

Throw in the arrival of Darwin Nunez and it seems Firmino’s game time will be cut even further.

However, the Reds have just let fringe attackers Divock Origi and Takumi Minamino leave for AC Milan and AS Monaco respectively meaning there may be a part to play for fan favourite Firmino after all.

For Juventus, Paulo Dybala has left the club and forward Alvaro Morata has returned to Atletico Madrid, leaving the Italian giants needing some attacking reinforcement.

Firmino would no doubt be a fine addition for the Italian side and could partner Dusan Vlahovic up front or even feature in an attacking midfield role that he developed earlier on in his career, with regular minutes guaranteed.

In midfield, they will be keen to add to their recent signings of Denis Zakaria (signed in January) and the return of former Juventus star Paul Pogba, who looks set to join on a free transfer from Manchester United for the second time in his career.

Keita would be another fine addition to their midfield but is unlikely to leave after having his best season in a Liverpool shirt to date.

Formally a Paris Saint-Germain player, Rabiot won everything that was on offer at domestic level, including five straight Ligue 1 titles before moving on to Juventus in 2019.

In three years at the Turin club, he’s won the league title, Coppa Italia and the Supercopa Italiana, becoming a regular fixture in the Juventus midfield in recent seasons.

He’s also featured fairly regularly for France with 29 caps and two goals since his debut in 2016 but has struggled to hold down a permanent place in their highly talented squad.

With a World Cup on the horizon, he will want regular first-team football in an attempt to ensure he gets to represent his country in Qatar at the end of the year.