The media in Italy is starting to get excited, they are reporting that Southampton's Carlos "Charly" Alcaraz is about to complete s surprise loan move to Juventus with a huge option to buy in the summer.

The news is that Charly Alcatraz is about to move to Italy on loan, but the big news is that his destination club Juventus will have a option to buy in the contract that will 40 million euros, meaning that should the option be exercised Saints will just about triple the £12 million they bought the Argentinian for a year ago, although it is understood that Racing Club in Argentina from whom Saints purchased him last January have a 15% sell on clause on any future sale, so would stand to make about 6 million euros.

Fabrizio Romano is saying it is a done deal and he is one of those journalists that usually get things right.

When he broke the story originally he claimed that the option to buy was 35 million euros, but he is now saying that Southampton held out for a higher price.

Of course this is only an option rather than an obligation to buy and Juventus could choose not to proceed with the purchase in the summer.

Romano had this to say on his X account.

Fabrizio Romano
@FabrizioRomano
⚪️⚫️🇦🇷 Carlos Alcaraz will become new Juventus player today.

All parties working on it, player’s agent also in UK to get the deal sealed with medical also in London later today.

Understand buy option will be more than €40m.

The arrival of Alcaraz is causing some excitement in the Juventus camp and they have high hopes that he will be a success, Southampton supporters though have more mixed emotions, although they see him as a great talent, it is perhaps not suited to not only a club like Southampton even in the Premier League and definitely not in the Championship.

Comparisons can perhaps be drawn with an ex Southampton player Sadio Mane, not in the style of their play, but in the fact that in his two years at St Mary's, Mane hardly set the World alight, for the first 2/3 of both seasons Mane was decidedly average, he showed glimpses of talent but it was only in the final third of both seasons he exploded into life.

That perhaps wasn't his fault, it was the style of play that Saints were forced to employ to succeed in the Premier League.

It was a surprise when Liverpool were prepared to pay a similar fee that Juventus will have to fork out in the summer for Alcaraz, but they had watched the player and knew he would flourish at Anfield where he would not be expected to track back so much, his job was all about in the final third of the field.

I feel that Alcaraz in a top side would flourish, there is no doubting his talent, but it all comes in the final third, his style is different to Mane's ,but the result would be the same, I think he will be a big success, if he is not at Juventus then somewhere else.

So I am a little sad that it hasn't worked out for him at St Mary's, it is not for a lack of effort on his part, no one could question his effort, but our style at present doesn't suit his, hence the strange situation where a top club in Europe is willing to pay around £35 million for a player who can't get a regular starting place in the Championship.

Photo: Action Images

IanRC added 09:24 - Jan 31 Well there goes one of our best players then, only 21 and a great talent but we sell him. Not going to help our promotion push one bit.
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landsdownsaint added 09:29 - Jan 31 I liked him as he & Stuart Armstrong are the only 2 to try something different, doesn’t allways come off , Alcaraz would be great in the Liverpool side
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GRIM added 09:40 - Jan 31 Bye Bye Charlie its been good while it lasted. But your talent obviously doesn't appeal to RM's style of play. Also that Argentinian aggression sometimes gets you into trouble & RM see's you as a risk he can't take. Thanks for your effort & hope it works out well for you at Juve.
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Farlow added 10:16 - Jan 31 For me it just shows a total lack of ambition, one of the few players amongst this average lot{on the whole}who would thrive in the Premiership should we get there.
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Block8 added 10:29 - Jan 31 It's about systems, playing style & however talented you are, if you don't fit the system you're a passenger. Signing Brooks will allow AA to move into the no 10 position leaving no room for Charlie. Has everything to be a great player but maybe not for us. Don't like to see him go but understand it.
3

derbydog added 10:59 - Jan 31 We do now have a lot of very good championship level players, and a few more coming back from season-long loans in the summer. How many are PL ready if we go up? Alcaraz was one and maybe the Man City imports will all be OK. I don’t see much else… We are likely to see a Nottingham Forest style summer me thinks, with a dozen leaving and as many arriving. Could be like thst even if we don’t go up.

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GRIM added 10:59 - Jan 31 As promising & talented as Charly is his impact this season has been limited. He rarely starts & is used as an impact sub. It's a great opportunity for him to go to Juve & impose himself. It's also a great deal for us but only if they sign him for the reported €50M, if they don't sign him & he comes back to us at end of season then we've achieved nothing other than losing a quality player for the critical period of our promotion push.

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dirk_doone added 11:01 - Jan 31 Ciao, Carlo
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Bowlercow added 11:24 - Jan 31 It perhaps explains why he hasn't been starting Less injury risk to a top asset If he fails at Juve and we go up perhaps he can come back and grace SMS again
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SaintPaulVW added 11:34 - Jan 31 You can't have it all. Fairly obvious he doesn't fit RM's style so playing time is limited. However great player and will be sorry to see him go but sometimes a move is best for player and club. However, it is only a loan so may be back.
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WanderingSaint added 11:43 - Jan 31 This is now on Sky: - "Sky in Italy are reporting Carlos Alcaraz is undergoing a medical with Juventus today ahead of joining from Southampton in a deal that could eventually be worth more than £45m. The medical tests are taking place in England and, if they are successful, he will fly to Turin tonight. The deal is set to be an initial loan with a fee of £3.2m plus an option to buy him in the summer for £42m. The loan fee will be more if he does not play a designated number of games between now and the end of the season." Hugely disappointed, hopefully we'll get promotion and a permanent deal won't go through.....

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highfield49 added 11:49 - Jan 31 If the deal comes to fruition then we should all wish him well for the rest of the season and, potentially, elsewhere in his career. I understand supporters frustration and accusations of "lack of ambition" directed at the club but let's not forget player ambition and the fact that the more Charlie's talent blossomed the more likely he would be unsettled by the big clubs. We've all seen the effects of players being tapped up in the past, performance drops off and some, seemingly, refusing to play after throwing toys far from the pram. Whilst Charlie's attitude has been fantastic every time he got on the pitch let's not forget that under RM he wasn't likely to get a regular starting spot because we couldn't build a team around his talents. Good luck mate, I think you're a star in the making but, very sadly, probably not in a Southampton shirt.

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Monksway added 13:27 - Jan 31 It really seems that Saints promotion push is being based on solid experienced championship players rather than exciting potential. I think Edozie and Kamaldeen will become the substitutes with a front line of Brooks, AA, Frazer. If you add KWP, Bednarek, Stephens, Manning, Downes, Smallbone, Rothwell and Stu there is a lot of experience now.
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131153 added 13:38 - Jan 31 I feel accepting this deal with Juventus is probably the right solution in the current situation. If he eventually returns for next season and we have made the PL will almost certainly be a better prospect.
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halftimeorange added 13:59 - Jan 31 I wouldn't mind betting that there is a temperament issue behind this departure. Several times in recent games Charlie has shown his displeasure at not receiving a pass or being subbed. Only recently Jack Stephens came and put an arm round him when Charlie stayed alone in the centre of the pitch whilst the rest of the team gathered around Russell Martin for mid-game instructions. I'm really sad to see him go as he always had an eye for goal. So much for Brooks being Tella's replacement.

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