Juventus complete shock move for Southampton target

Juventus have confirmed the surprise arrival of Schalke youngster Weston McKennie on a season-long loan deal with an option to buy.

McKennie is the first signing of Andrea Pirlo's stint as Juventus head coach and the Old Lady have agreed a deal worth up to €23m (£20.5m) for the versatile midfielder.

Juventus will pay a €4.5m loan fee for the United States international and will have the option to pay a further €18.5m if they want to sign him permanently.

Andrea Pirlo's side have an obligation to sign McKennie if the youngster players in more than 60 per cent of their 2020/21 matches.

McKennie was heavily linked with a move to Premier League outfit Southampton earlier this month after being earmarked as their top choice to replace Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.

The 21-year-old was keen on joining Southampton but has now ended up at Juventus in a life-changing transfer.

Juventus are planning sweeping changes following Maurizio Sarri's departure, with Blaise Matuidi already gone and the likes of Gonzalo Higuain and Sami Khedira to follow.

McKennie made 28 Bundesliga appearances for Schalke last season and predominantly played in central midfield despite some outings at centre-back.

The American starlet has made 78 Bundesliga appearances for Schalke since breaking into the first-team set up at the end of 2016/17.

Interestingly, in that time the German outift have a far suprerior win ratio in the league when he hasn't started (42.6%) compared to when he has (26.8%).