Wednesday, 25th January, 2012
Manchester City and Juventus are locked in a tussle for highly rated Dutch youngster Jeroen Lumu.
The 16-year-old forward is under contract to Dutch second division outfit Willem II and is a product of the Tilburg club’s youth academy.
Lumu’s talent has been signposted for some time and, after starring for Holland’s Under-17s, Willem II tied the youngster to a fresh three-year deal in December.
The Dutchman was initially earmarked to spend the entire season with Willem II’s second string as the former Eredivisie side stressed their desire to allow Lumu to continue his development before plunging him into a promotion battle.
However, Lumu impressed coach Jurgen Streppel to such an extent when called upon to train with the first team that the ex-Helmond Sport boss handed the hitman his debut, bringing the 16-year-old on as a substitute for veteran Finnish winger Joonas Kolkka.
Lumu was again in action against FC Eindhoven soon after, being brought on again for Kolkka with Willem II 1-0 down. The 16-year-old quickly made his presence felt, scoring and in the process becoming the club’s youngest ever goalscorer at 16 years and 238 days.
The forward’s talent has not gone unnoticed, with sources in Holland confirming that both Juventus and Manchester City are seriously keen on snapping Lumu up.
Juventus have thus far made most of the running, with director general Beppe Marotta aware that Manchester City could blow any offer the Italians can make out of the water.
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