Merih Demiral was a member of Juventus' roster from 2019 to 2022, albeit he played for Atalanta on loan throughout the latter part of that time. One of the best young defenders in Europe, the Turkish defender came to the Bianconeri with high expectations. Although he pleased Juve, Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini were still preferred, therefore he was not given enough room to play.
He finally made the effort to go to Atlanta, where he is currently a Saudi Pro League player. Now that he has spoken out about leaving Juventus, the defender reveals why he left and admits that Cristiano Ronaldo tried to persuade him to stay. Calciomercato reported Demiral as saying: "It was an honor to represent Juventus and win while wearing that shirt. I worked out with Allegri for about two months after Pirlo, but ultimately I felt it would be best for me to play consistently for Atalanta.