Tiago Djalò: Who is the ex-Milan defender on the verge of joining Juventus

Juventus are reportedly in advanced talks to sign Tiago Djalò from Lille: here’s who the Portuguese defender is and where he can play in Turin.

Sky Sport Italia reports Juventus are in advanced talks to sign Djalò on a permanent €3m transfer from Ligue 1 side Lille. His current deal in France runs out in the summer and the Bianconeri have beaten competition from Inter, who had reached a verbal agreement to secure his services on a free transfer in June.

The Nerazzurri are not expected to make an offer to sign the Portuguese defender in the winter transfer window, so Djalò seems destined to join the Nerazzurri rivals Juventus this month.

A former Milan defender, the 23-year-old has remained out of action for nearly a year due to a severe knee injury suffered in March 2023.

Right-footed, Djalò can cover any role in a four-man defence, but given his physicality (1,90m), he will likely be used as a centre-back in Turin. Juventus currently play with a three-man defence so Djalò can fill any spot in Max Allegri’s backline.

He spent just a few months at Milan in 2019, joining the Rossoneri academy in January and leaving in August to join Lille. He didn’t make his senior debut under Gennaro Gattuso but played 15 games with the Rossoneri’s Primavera team (U19).

Milan signed him permanently for €1m and Djalò posed with Leonardo and Paolo Maldini after his transfer to the Stadio Meazza. He left the Rossoneri early because he was included in a swap deal for Rafael Leao in the summer of 2019 and was valued at €4m by the Serie A giants.

Djalò started playing semi-consistently in his second season at Lille, collecting 17 Ligue 1 appearances in 2020-21 when the Ligue 1 side surprisingly won the French title. Many players from that title-winning squad would move to Serie A in the following months: Mike Maignan (Milan), Jonathan Ikoné (Fiorentina), Zaki Celik and Renato Sanches (Roma), Domagoj Bradaric (Salernitana), Adama Soumaoro (Bologna) and Timothy Weah (Juventus). Djalò will reunite with the American winger if he finalises his transfer to the Allianz Stadium.

Djalò also played with Victor Osimhen at Lille in 2019-20 and met his Napoli side a year ago, in a friendly match played during the World Cup break and won 4-1 by the Ligue 1 club.

During Lille’s title-winning campaign, Djalò made headlines for a dispute with Brazilian star Neymar. It led to a red card for both players, who continued arguing inside the tunnel, where they had to be separated before coming to blows.

Djalò won the French Supercup with Lille the following season and has made 102 appearances with the Ligue 1 side, scoring three goals. He mainly played as a centre-back at Lille but was also deployed as a right or left defender at times during his time in the French club.

The 23-year-old defender has yet to make his senior Portugal debut but was called up for the World Cup playoffs in March 2022.