Fiorentina Closer to Signing Zirkzee than Juventus

Joshua Zirkzee’s Manchester United chapter is drifting towards its end, and Serie A is queuing up to reopen the book.

Both Fiorentina and Juventus are working on a deal for the Dutch forward, but right now it is La Viola who are closer to getting something signed, according to the latest reports from Italy.

United are prepared to let the 25-year-old leave before the summer window closes. Two years of limited chances at Old Trafford have pushed the club and the player towards the exit door. Last season he started only five Premier League games. On the opening weekend of the 2026-27 campaign, away to newly promoted Hull City, he did not even get off the bench.

The competition around him has only tightened. Marcus Rashford has returned from his loan spell at Barcelona, crowding an already congested attacking department and shunting Zirkzee further down the pecking order.

Italy, though, remembers a different version of him. In 2023-24, in his final season with Bologna, Zirkzee hit 11 Serie A goals and looked fully at home in the league’s tactical grind. That form is why both Juventus and Fiorentina have been sounding out a return to the peninsula.

The two clubs, though, are moving at different speeds.

Juventus want another attacker but are constrained by their own squad puzzle. Any serious move for Zirkzee will likely have to wait until they can shift Jonathan David and free up space and resources. Until that happens, their interest remains conditional.

Fiorentina’s need is sharper. Moise Kean is on his way out, set to join Champions League side Como in a €40m deal, and Vincenzo Italiano’s side require a replacement who can walk straight into the rotation. Zirkzee, with his Serie A experience and age profile, fits that brief cleanly.

That urgency could prove decisive. With Juventus still juggling sales and Fiorentina pushing for a quicker resolution, La Gazzetta dello Sport reports that the Tuscan club are currently in the stronger position to strike an agreement with Manchester United.

For Zirkzee, the choice is looming: a Juventus move dependent on a domino falling elsewhere, or a Fiorentina project ready for him now.