Julian Draxler's future at Schalke unclear
July 23, 2015
Julian Draxler's future continues to remain unclear after reports on Thursday. Schalke's Sporting Director Horst Heldt confirmed the attacking midfielder was flattered by interest from Juventus, but added no concrete offer had been made.
The 21-year-old had been granted permission to speak to the defending Italian champions, despite having signed a contract with Schalke until 2018. Fortunately for Juventus, Draxler's 45.5 million euro (50 million dollars) release clause expired at the end of June.
The details of the negotiations remain unclear, but Italian national sports newspaper "Corriere dello Sport" has stated Schalke are demanding 30 million euros, while Juventus prefers a loan deal with an option to buy. In Germany, Ruhr area sports magazine "RevierSport" reported after Schalke's friendly win Draxler had thrown a leaving party, but not long after being uploaded the news article was taken offline.
Record-setting winger
Draxler has struggled over the last two seasons, as a hamstring injury and a tendon tear in his right thigh have stopped him hitting the form that saw him rise to prominence back in 2013. The tricky right-footed, left winger remains the youngest player to ever play for Schalke in the Bundesliga having made his debut aged 17 years and 117 days old. The attacking midfielder has already made 166 appearances for Schalke, including 116 in the Bundesliga and 23 in the Champions League.
With Arturo Vidal soon to be unveiled at Bayern Munich, there is a space opening up in the Juventus squad. On top of that, Schalke's interest in former Bayern winger Xherdan Shaqiri has intensified and winger Sidney Sam has been given a second chance. Draxler appears to be the missing piece to this latest transfer puzzle.