Juventus centre-back Federico Gatti has been included in the club's travelling squad for their pre-season tour of Asia, Luciano Spalletti's Juventus confirming the 28-year-old defender among the convocati as the Bianconeri prepare for the new campaign — even as Napoli's interest in him refuses to quiet down.
The significance of that inclusion is not cosmetic. Gatti's presence on the tour, while Adzic and Joao Mario were left out — the latter reportedly the subject of an agreed deal with Fiorentina — signals that Spalletti is treating the defender as part of his working group rather than a player being managed toward the exit. In a summer where Juventus are navigating a tight budget, keeping Gatti available and fit carries practical weight.
That calculation sits in tension with what Napoli want. Massimiliano Allegri's side have approached Juventus over a loan deal with an option to buy, with Allegri's personal desire to work with Gatti again understood to be central to the enquiry. The structure of the proposal — a loan rather than a permanent transfer — tells its own story about the gap between what Napoli are willing to commit and what Juventus would prefer to receive.
Gatti's season data gives both clubs something to argue over. Across 20 Serie A appearances in 2025-26, he contributed two goals and carried an average rating of 6.80 — solid, if unspectacular, numbers for a defender at a club that finished sixth with 68 points from 37 matches, conceding 32 goals across the campaign. His AI overall score of 64 out of 100 in assessed capability suggests a player who has largely reached his ceiling, which makes the loan-with-option structure more understandable from Napoli's perspective: they want to verify fit before committing fully.
Spalletti, for his part, has been candid about the squad's recent history, acknowledging that Juventus made poor signings in recent years. That admission frames the current transfer window as one of correction rather than ambition — which is precisely why retaining a reliable, known quantity like Gatti on tour makes sense even while his future is unresolved.
Juventus beat Nizza 2-0 in their most recent pre-season fixture, with Douglas Luiz and Oboavwoduo on the scoresheet, suggesting the squad is taking shape around Spalletti's preferences. Gatti's inclusion alongside new arrivals Alajbegovic and Kolo Muani places him in the core of that shape — for now.
Whether Allegri's persistence eventually moves Juventus toward a deal, or whether Gatti simply opens the season in Turin, the Asia tour has at least clarified one thing: Spalletti has not written him off.