Juventus freeze contract renewals until March, with Kalulu the exception

What happened

Juventus have put all contract renewals on hold until March, according to a report by Corriere dello Sport, a stance the club has taken to deal with a period of major uncertainty on both the technical and coaching fronts. The only possible exception is the French defender Pierre Kalulu, whose performances have never been in question.

Report details

The freeze follows a run of extensions in recent months: Kenan Yildiz first, then Manuel Locatelli, Weston McKennie and Nico Gonzalez. The first three came with significant pay rises, with Yildiz going from 1.5 million to 6.5 million, Locatelli from 3 to 4 million and McKennie from 2.5 to 4.5 million. According to the report, that adds up to 16 million a year more in wages without an overall improvement in the team's performances, after missing out on the Champions League and with a strong risk of doing so again this season. The club's finances, the report says, do not allow further increases to the wage bill.

Few resources will be freed up next summer: Neto, Milik, Grabara, Sarr and Woltemade, with the German on a heavy salary of 5.5 million but likely to be replaced by a similar profile, at least in terms of cost.

Kalulu is the exception because his performances are almost always more than sufficient whether he plays as a full-back, a wing-back or a central defender, in a back three or a back two, the report says. He has worked under three different coaches, Thiago Motta, Igor Tudor and now Luciano Spalletti, always as a starter, and this season he has played all eleven league games from the start without ever coming off, plus three of four in the Europa League, coming on for 45 minutes. He will probably miss Venezia and Omonia Nicosia, which the report calls almost a news item in itself. He currently earns 2.5 million and would like to reach around 4 million; meeting halfway, with a limited increase, could be a solution, though it is not certain it would be accepted by a player considered the best value-for-money signing of the last three seasons.

On Douglas Luiz, there had been talk in recent weeks of an extension, possibly to spread the amortisation on the balance sheet year by year, but no contacts are reported as of a few days ago, and with the situation now frozen a renewal is particularly difficult to imagine. Francisco Conceiçao has been out recently through injury despite responding very well at the start of the season; with Kolo Muani in this form on the right wing and an agreement currently valid until 2030, he is no longer a priority. Khephren Thuram's deal expires in 2029 and his performances before his stoppage would suggest finding an agreement to extend, but that is not a theme until spring, when the club will decide how to proceed. For now, Juventus have decided to close the taps until further notice, at least until it becomes clear whether there is reason to be optimistic about the club's near future, which the report says will only come with wins, perhaps in a row.