Juventus loanee seals permanent transfer after activating buy clause

Juventus loanee seals permanent transfer after activating buy clause

Juventus have effectively bought Lois Openda from RB Leipzig due to an obligation to buy clause inserted in the agreement between the two clubs.

The Belgian sealed a deadline-day move last summer, originally joining on a loan deal. This was considered by many as a panic buy from Damien Comolli, after giving up on signing Randal Kolo Muani from Paris Saint-Germain.

Sadly for the Serie A giants, this transfer didn’t pan out too well for the club, as the 26-year-old hasn’t been able to deliver convincing displays and has only contributed with two goals across all competitions.

Lois Openda has been a frustrating figure at the Allianz Stadium

Openda certainly wasn’t the only new addition to disappoint this season. In fact, none of Juve’s summer signings managed to impress.

But unlike Jonathan David, Edon Zhegrova, and Joao Mario, the Belgian international will cost the Serie A giants a hefty transfer fee of €40 million.

While the deal was labelled as a loan with an obligation to buy, a permanent transfer had been envisioned from the get-go, as the buy clause hinged on easily achievable objectives.

As revealed in recent months, the obligation to buy Openda would be triggered by a Top-10 finish in the Serie A standings.

On Monday morning, several sources in the Italian media, including Sportitalia, have confirmed this contract detail, believing that the permanent transfer has already been activated.

Juventus forced to pay €40 million to keep Openda

After beating Atalanta on Saturday, Juventus climbed to fourth place in the table with 60 points. The following morning, 11th-placed Sassuolo were beaten by Genoa, with their tally freezing on 42 points.

With six rounds remaining until the end of the season, it has become mathematically impossible for the Emilians to leapfrog Juventus in the table, especially with the Old Lady having the advantage in the head-to-head.

Therefore, the Bianconeri are guaranteed to stay in the top half of the Serie A table, but this achievement will entail an unwanted €40 million investment.

Juve will certainly place Openda on the market, but selling him permanently is highly unlikely due to his relatively high book value (imposed by his transfer fee). Hence, loaning out the Belgian attacker is a more plausible solution.