Juventus sign Italy's Euro 2020 hero Manuel Locatelli from Sassuolo

Posted Thursday, August 19, 2021 by ESPN

Juventus have completed the signing of midfielder Manuel Locatelli from Sassuolo.

Locatelli, who had been the subject of a bid from Arsenal following Euro 2020 according to Sassuolo's CEO, had his Juve medical on Wednesday, with the Bianconeri posting pictures of his arrival on their Twitter page.

The 23-year-old, who was a member of Italy's victorious Euro 2020 squad, started his career at AC Milan before moving to Sassuolo on loan in 2018 and then joining them permanently a year later.

Locatelli scored with his first-ever shot in Serie A to help Milan come from 3-1 down to beat Sassuolo 4-3 and shot to prominence with a stunning goal past Gianluigi Buffon in the Rossoneri's 1-0 victory over Juve in 2016.

He helped Milan win the 2016 Italian Supercoppa before a dip in form saw him lose his first-team place and he moved to Sassuolo.

With the help of manager Roberto De Zerbi, he re-established himself as a top Serie A midfielder and was an important part of the Italy side which won Euro 2020 -- starting the first two matches and scoring twice in a 3-0 victory over Switzerland.

He missed a penalty in the semifinal shootout victory over Spain and came on during extra-time to replace Marco Verratti in the final victory over England at Wembley.