Juventus chief Giuntoli: ‘Kolo Muani very eager to stay’ beyond June 2025

Juventus director Cristiano Giuntoli confirms they want to ‘keep the Italian flag flying’ in the Champions League against PSV Eindhoven and Randal Kolo Muani is ‘very eager’ to stay beyond the terms of his PSG loan.

It kicks off at the PSV Stadion in Eindhoven at 20.00 GMT.

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens on the Liveblog.

The Bianconeri won the first leg 2-1 in Turin with goals from Weston McKennie and Samuel Mbangula, while Ivan Perisic had scored a temporary equaliser.

There is no away goals rule now in UEFA competition, so any loss by one clear goal would lead to extra time, while a defeat by more than one clear goal hands the tie to PSV Eindhoven.

Giuntoli confident of Juventus future

Considering the surprise elimination of Milan to Feyenoord and Atalanta to Club Brugge, does that make Juventus a little more worried ahead of tonight’s play-off?

“On the one hand, it fills us with a sense of responsibility for keeping the Italian flag flying in Europe, on the other it shows yet again the difficulties there are playing at this level and we are ready,” Giuntoli told Sky Sport Italia and Amazon Prime Video Italia.

Those exits at the play-off stage will be very costly for the clubs, so are Juve also focused on the financial imperative of continuing in the Champions League?

“We are thinking of the sporting importance of getting through, as on a financial level we are doing fairly well. We are limiting the expenses and helping young players to grow, so we are balancing the budget and keeping the team competitive.”

According to Amazon Prime Video Italia, some PSV fans set off fireworks outside the Juventus team hotel late last night in a bid to disturb their sleep.

Kolo Muani has been a complete revelation since arriving on loan from Paris Saint-Germain, so is there any further progress in negotiations for Juventus to make the move a permanent one, or at least extend the loan with an additional option to buy?

“We have not had contact lately, but there is a great rapport between the two clubs. The player is very eager to remain with us and we are eager to keep him, so we are very confident for the future,” concluded Giuntoli.