€43m star says yes to Man Utd transfer

22 Jul 2026 18:03 BST | 4 min read

Tom Weber | Writer

Multilingual sports writer who specialises in European football and American soccer.

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Manchester United forward Joshua Zirkzee has approved a transfer to Juventus as he seeks to revive his career back in Serie A.

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The Netherlands international joined the Red Devils with plenty of fanfare in the summer of 2024 in a deal worth close to €43 million. Compared to Zlatan Ibrahimovic during his time at Bologna, the towering but fleet-footed attacker looked a huge talent.

Two years on, however, it is clear that his move to Old Trafford was a huge mistake. Zirkzee has not just failed to nail down a starting spot, he has consistently struggled to even just get on the pitch for Man Utd.

Current ETV

Joshua Zirkzee

F (C)

Man Utd

Joshua Zirkzee

F (C)

Man Utd

ETV Range

€22.8M - €27.8M

He played just over 600 minutes in the Premier League last season, yet he bizarrely chose to stay at Man Utd in January despite knowing full well that it would doom his chances of making the Netherlands' World Cup squad.

Unsurprisingly, he didn't make the Dutch roster, and there are no signs of his fortunes improving next season given that Man Utd's star striker Benjamin Sesko will now be fully acclimatised to Premier League football.

Zirkzee ready to leave

Accordingly, Zirkzee is now looking to belatedly get out of Old Trafford for the good of his career. According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Juventus have reignited their long-standing interest in the 25-year-old, and he has already greenlit a potential move to Turin.

The Bianconeri have been keen on the versatile attacker since his breakthrough at Bologna, and there is now optimism that they could finally land him this summer. What's more, Juventus believe that they can sign Randal Kolo Muani and Zirkzee in the same window.

This is despite the fact that they are not blessed with a large transfer war chest, nor have they really managed to offload any significant deadwood yet, such as Teun Koopmeiners and Jonathan David.

Because of this, it is difficult to believe that a deal for Zirkzee could be imminent, but there nevertheless appears to be confidence in Italy. The Dutchman is "enticed by the prospect of returning to Italy."

Juventus would ideally like to sign Zirkzee on an initial loan, but it remains to be seen if Man Utd are receptive to this. One thing that works in the club's favour, though, is their strong relationship with the player's all-powerful agent, Kia Joorabchian.

The fact that Ricky Massara is now Juventus' new head of football also helps: he "spent more hours on the phone with Zirkzee's entourage over the past Christmas than with many childhood friends" because he desperately wanted to sign him for AS Roma, where he was sporting director.

A deal for Zirkzee is in the early stages, and there is no clear sign of which way this saga could go. But the player is keen on the move, and Juventus are working hard to finally fix their long-standing striker issues.