​Juventus have completed the signing of centre back Merih Demiral from Sassuolo for a fee of €18m.


The Turkey international initially joined Sassuolo on loan in January, but enjoyed a hugely impressive few months in Serie A. Sassuolo made his loan move permanent, but it was expected that they may look to sell him for a quick profit.

That is exactly what has happened, with ​Juventus taking to their ​official website to confirm Demiral has signed a five-year contract in Turin after the two clubs agreed on a fee of €18m, which will be paid over the next four years.


They wrote: "Another quality reinforcement for the Bianconero defence. Merih Demiral, a young and talented defender for the Turkish National Team, will be a Juventus player until 30 June 2024!


"Born in 1998, Demiral is a footballer who combines technical skills with great physical power, which, combined with a keen sense of position, allows him to guard the penalty area to full affect.

"In Italy, he featured in 14 games, while taking to the field for 1260 minutes. He also scored two goals, won 66.7% of his tackles, and had a pass accuracy of 87%. This is his flattering data, but there is also more to it.


"In fact, Demiral is the youngest defender to have scored at least two goals in the ​Serie A 2018/19 season after Cristian Romero, while he is also the youngest defender to have scored twice in the five major European leagues in the 2018/19 campaign after Stuttgart's Ozan Kabak.

"That’s not all...No Sassuolo player was beaten fewer times than Demiral in the last season; the new Bianconero defender blocked 48 balls in the 2018/19 Serie A season – more than any other Sassuolo player – and not least, he is the first Turkish defender to have scored in the league.


"A new adventure begins for him now. Welcome!"