Juventus in talks with Jorge Mendes over centre-back Rui Costa wants | OneFootball

Tiago Gabriel is attracting increasing attention on the international market after a breakthrough season with Lecce. The 21-year-old Portuguese centre-back is being described as one of the most undervalued under-21 central defenders across Europe’s five major leagues.

The numbers help explain his growing profile. In Serie A 2025/26, the centre-back featured in 33 matches for Lecce, starting 32 of them, for a total of 2,860 minutes. The defender also scored two league goals, against Cagliari and Fiorentina, and ended the season with five yellow cards.

According to the information released, Juventus have already made contact with Jorge Mendes with a view to a possible transfer for the Portuguese player. The agent, who represents Tiago Gabriel, therefore appears as the intermediary in a potential deal involving the Lecce defender.

The player’s rise in Italy has been swift. He joined Lecce in January 2025, after a spell at Estrela, and made his Serie A debut against Juventus on 12 April that year. Since then, he has steadily earned his place and established himself as one of the key players in the Italian side.

Juventus’ interest adds to that of Benfica, a club that has also already been linked with the Portuguese centre-back. Tiago Gabriel is thus now being linked with two historic names in European football, after a season in which he managed to establish himself in one of the top leagues.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.