The £39m lethal striker who could be Coventry's dream summer signing – and take the Premier League by storm
Newly-promoted Coventry have been linked with a top class striker - could a statement signing be in the works?
Now that the post-celebration hangover has receded somewhat, newly-promoted Coventry City face a daunting task that has proven beyond most teams to make their way to the Premier League in recent years – building a squad that cuts the mustard in the top flight.
A week ahead of the opening of the summer transfer window, work has already begun. Reports suggesting that the club have launched a bid to sign goalkeeper Carl Rushworth permanently after his successful loan spell in the Championship, and other names allegedly under consideration include Southampton centre-back Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Porto wing-back Francisco Moura.
But one particularly eye-catching name in the conversation is Juventus striker Loïs Openda – a potential statement deal as Coventry attempt to follow Sunderland and Leeds’ examples and plant a flag in the Premier League over the summer.
Juventus ready to sell as Coventry eye Loïs Openda deal – reports
Several reports have made the connection between Belgium international Openda and Coventry City, but a new story from Italian outlet Tuttosport suggests that Juventus are actively working to agree a deal with the Sky Blues – or one of their potential rivals for Openda’s signature.
Juventus signed Openda from RB Leipzig for a fee rising to £39m last summer, but his one season in Turin proved to be something of a disaster and he scored just two goals in 37 appearances. With his form shot to pieces, he played just five minutes of first-team football for his club after the start of March.
With Juventus needing to raise some funds to cover a worrying financial shortfall after they missed out on Champions League qualification, they are now actively shopping Openda around, with Coventry widely reported as being one of the most prominent suitors for a striker who boasted a hugely impressive goalscoring record before his frustrating spell in Serie A.
So keen are Juventus to move on from their failed experiment that they are supposedly pushing the idea of a letting him leave on an initial loan deal which an option to buy later, which could allow Coventry to get a crucial deal over the line without taking any undue risks – although the precise terms are unclear, and the size of the likely loan fee has not yet been reported.
Will Openda move to Coventry – or will another team get there first?
If Coventry want to strike a deal for the 26-year-old, the only barrier is likely to be the player himself and their potential rivals. Tuttosport report that Rennes are keen, as are Lens – for whom he scored 21 goals in the 2022/23 season.
A reunion with his former side may be something Openda prefers, but as a newly-minted Premier League side, Coventry may enjoy a financial advantage when it comes to contract renegotiations. Openda’s own preferences remain unclear.
Despite a dire year in Italy, signing the Belgian would still represent something of a coup for Coventry if they could pull it off. His scoring record in Germany, France and the Netherlands was formidable.
His 31 goals and 14 assists across two years in the Bundesliga were impressive enough to persuade Juventus to make a splash to sign him in the first place, and his exceptional pace and dynamic movement have made him lethal almost everywhere other than Juventus – and, perhaps, the Belgian national team.
His return of three goals in 33 caps is something of a disappointment and testament to the fact that he doesn’t necessarily score freely in every side and every tactical system, but his overall career trajectory suggests that signing him would be a risk worth taking – especially if it was only on loan. It’s also a chance that Coventry may very well take.