Fiorentina Targets Joao Mario in Loan Deal from Juventus
Fiorentina are closing in on Joao Mario, sensing an opportunity where Juventus see only a dead end.
The Viola are in advanced talks to take the Portuguese full-back on loan from Juve with an option to buy, in a package expected to reach around €8-9 million by the end of the season, according to Sky Sport Italia’s Gianluca Di Marzio. It is a deal shaped as much by lost value as by potential revival.
Joao Mario's Juventus Tenure
Juventus paid €12m to bring Joao Mario from FC Porto in the summer of 2025, a move that was supposed to secure the right flank for years. It never took off. The 26-year-old struggled to establish himself in Turin, squeezed by competition and inconsistency, and quickly slid down the pecking order.
The numbers tell the story. Just 13 appearances in a Juventus shirt, with a single assist to show for it, before the club moved him on in January to Bologna as part of an exchange that saw Emil Holm head to Turin.
Spell at Bologna
The spell in Emilia-Romagna at least showed signs of life. Joao Mario played 15 times for Bologna, scoring two goals and offering flashes of the attacking thrust that first drew Juventus to him. It was not enough for either club to commit. Bologna declined to turn the loan into a permanent stay, and Juventus were in no mood to reintegrate him. So he returned to Turin, surplus to requirements and waiting for the next call.
That call has come from Florence.
Fiorentina's Interest
Fiorentina, always alert to market opportunities within Serie A, see a player who still has prime years ahead of him and can operate up and down the right. For a club that often rebuilds intelligently rather than extravagantly, a loan with an option to buy at a reduced price fits perfectly.
There is another layer to the deal. When Juventus signed Joao Mario from Porto, the Portuguese club secured a 10 per cent cut of any future profit. At the time, it looked like smart business. Now, with Juve prepared to accept a total fee below the original €12m outlay, there is no profit to share. Porto, in this scenario, get nothing.
For Juventus, the move is about cutting losses and clearing space. For Fiorentina, it is about timing. A defender whose value has dipped, but whose profile still suits Serie A and whose last loan showed he can contribute when trusted, is exactly the sort of calculated gamble that can pay off.
If the deal goes through as expected, Joao Mario will stay in a league he already knows, swap Turin for Florence, and try to prove that his story in Italy is not already written.
