Alex Santisteban, the agent of young Juventus defender Dean Huijsen, disclosed to Tuttosport (via Mundo Deportivo) that his client chose Juventus over both Barcelona and Bayern Munich when he was just a teenager. Huijsen is currently playing for the Bianconeri.

This past weekend, Huijsen, who is only 18 years old, made his first appearance with the Juventus first squad. He was a substitute in the club’s victory over AC Milan.

Before making the move to Juventus in the summer of 2021, the central defender, who is now 18 years old, spent the majority of his youth career in Spain playing for Malaga.

However, Barcelona was also interested in acquiring his talents at the time, and Jordi Cruyff, who was serving as Barcelona’s former sporting director at the time, made a personal push for the club to sign the Dutch prospect.

According to reports, Bayern Munich was also a contender for the services of Huijsen; however, the player ultimately decided to join with Juventus because, according to his agent, he felt that this was the best move for him.

Even Jordi Cruyff, while he was serving as Barca’s sporting director, made a personal effort to sign him. However, we favored Juventus over Barca or Bayern Munich for two reasons: the first was Juventus’ transparency, as Santisteban explained. “Barca and Bayern Munich were not as clear.”

“They expressed themselves to me with the precise precision of a surgeon and had an idea of the kind of career the player could have. They planned out each and every detail for Dean in great detail. We wasted no time falling head over heels in love.

“Secondly, the child wanted to play in Serie A, which is a perfect league to develop as a defender technically and tactically because it is one of the most competitive leagues in the world. The Serie A is a master for defenders, just as Barcelona is a master for midfielders and Real Madrid is a master for playmakers.

Despite the fact that Barcelona may not have been able to sign Huijsen, Fabrizio Romano stated in December of the previous year that the club was still keeping an eye on the promising young Dutch defender.

However, the young defensive ace just signed a new contract with Juventus, dedicating his future to the Bianconeri until 2027. This makes it impossible to sell him in the near future because he has committed his future to the Bianconeri.