Alfredo Pedulla, a journalist in Italy posted earlier today that a move by Italian giants, Juventus for Sporting KC defender, Erik Palmer-Brown was close. He explained that the club has reached a deal with Sporting and it's just a matter of negotiating with MLS to secure the deal. The deal would not go through until the 2015 summer transfer window, because Palmer-Brown does not turn 18 until April of 2015 and does not hold a EU passport. The combination of factors means that Palmer-Brown would have to wait until the summer to move abroad.
On the surface this would be a great move for Palmer-Brown who would get to play for a team that has great defenders like Alessandro Birindelli, Antonio Cabrini, Fabio Cannavaro, and numerous others. Palmer-Brown would likely start out going out on loans to other teams in Italy, probably in Serie B or Serie C to get him further experience.
The deal would net Sporting KC over $1.2 million dollars, the second highest transfer fee of the year after KC got around $1.5 million for Oriol Rosell earlier this year.
Personally I am still a little skeptical of the report. Why? Mainly because Pedulla has been reporting since January that a deal between Sporting and Juventus was "nearly done" since January when the rumor really started to crop up. Pedulla seems to write a story every month or so with an update on the situation without really giving an update (he provided an "update" in September). And I'm to the point where I'm tired of hearing the reports from him without any other media reporting it, without referencing back to him.
I'm not saying that the deal won't happen, or even that Sporting hasn't talked about selling Palmer-Brown to Juventus. Cause both are false. Sporting reportedly turned down a deal in January, and Juventus representatives were at Sporting's preseason to watch the American youth international.What I'm saying is that I'm going to take anything that Pedulla says regarding Palmer-Brown with a grain of salt until I see another reputable news source report it is a done deal without referencing back to Pedulla.
For me, Palmer-Brown will eventually make the jump to Europe as long as he continues to develop. While he showed his inexperience this year at times with the Sporting first team, he also showed the ability, athleticism, and skill that has made him one a member of the US U20 roster at 17 and has him on the radar of a club like Juventus. I'm just tired of the same reports coming out from the same person month after month.
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