Fiorentina Targets Joao Mario on Loan from Juventus

Fiorentina see an opportunity where Juventus see a dead end. The Viola are in advanced talks to take Joao Mario on loan from the Bianconeri, with an option to buy that would bring the total package to around €8-9m, according to Sky Sport Italia’s Gianluca Di Marzio.

For the Portugal international, it already feels like a crossroads.

From €12m bet to surplus asset

Juventus brought Joao Mario in from FC Porto in the summer of 2025 for about €12m, a move that was supposed to modernise their right flank and inject energy into the back line. It never really took off.

Thirteen appearances in black and white, one assist, and little sign that he had convinced successive coaches he could be a long-term solution. The numbers tell the story of a player who struggled to impose himself in Turin rather than one frozen out by circumstance.

The original deal with Porto adds a twist. The Portuguese club negotiated a 10 per cent cut of any profit on a future sale. With Juve now prepared to accept a total fee lower than what they paid, there is no profit to share. Porto watch from afar and get nothing.

Bologna spell, no permanent home

In January, Juventus tried to unlock his value. Joao Mario moved to Bologna as part of an exchange that saw Emil Holm head in the opposite direction. A fresh start, a different system, a coach willing to trust full-backs in advanced areas – on paper, it suited him.

On the pitch, he responded reasonably well: 15 appearances, two goals, a more visible presence than he had ever been in Turin. It was enough to show he can function in Serie A, but not enough to force Bologna into a permanent commitment. Juventus also stopped short of making Holm’s switch a long-term one at that stage.

So Joao Mario returned to Turin this summer with the same label he left with: no clear future at the club, and a contract that needed a solution.

Fiorentina move gathers pace

This is where Fiorentina step in. The Florence club are working to close a deal that would see the 26-year-old arrive on loan, with an option to buy at the end of the season. The total outlay, including the fee if they trigger the option, is expected to sit just below the €9m mark.

For Fiorentina, it is a calculated gamble on a full-back still in his mid‑twenties, already adapted to Italian football, and available at a price that reflects his stalled trajectory at Juventus rather than his potential ceiling.

For Juventus, it is a chance to move on a player who has slipped down the pecking order and whose market value has clearly dipped since 2025. There is no profit to be made here, only the possibility of trimming the squad and recouping part of the original fee.

Joao Mario has already discovered how quickly a big move can lose its shine in Serie A. If this transfer goes through, Florence may be his last, best chance to prove he belongs at the sharp end of Italian football.