Juventus still expected to win the race for Ligue 1 star despite West Ham onslaught

Juventus are determined to prevail in the tug-of-war against West Ham United for the services of Jean-Clair Todibo.

The Bianconeri have pinpointed the Nice defender as their main target to bolster the backline ahead of the upcoming campaign.

The left-footed French defender would slot in alongside Gleison Bremer in Thiago Motta’s newly implemented 4-2-3-1 formation.

But while Juventus have an agreement in hand with the player, the white smoke has yet to emerge in their talks with the Ligue 1 side.

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport via TuttoJuve, the Serie A giants are still working on a formula to appease Nice.

The French side is requesting figures in the region of 35 million euros, while Juventus are only offering a loan deal with an option or obligation to buy for a total sum of 30 million euros.

The pink newspaper believes the conditions are there for an agreement between the two clubs to be found, even though West Ham are trying to hijack the operation.

As the source explains, the Hammers have presented Nice with a higher offer than Juve’s.

However, Todibo has already given his word to the Old Lady, so he still intends to play his football at the Allianz Stadium this season.

So it remains to be seen if the Bianconeri will manage to find a breakthrough in the coming days.

The French defender started his career at Toulouse and then had an early-career experience at Barcelona.

After struggling to carve himself a place at Camp Nou, he returned to France through the gates of Nice in 2021, re-establishing himself as one the most exciting up-and-coming defenders in the league.