Rumours have been mounting that Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini could be moving to Manchester United this summer. However his agent has quelled speculation linking Chiellini with a move to Old Trafford which begs the question, has it all been a ploy to get him a better deal in Turin?

Chiellini has been at Juventus since 2004 and gradually throughout the years has developed into a key player for the team. Originally starting out at left back Chiellini was moved to centreback by Claudio Ranieri and hasn’t looked back since. He is a big, strong, no nonsense defender and his reading of the game is excellent, he may not be the quickest but his anticipation more than makes up for it. A regular for Italy now, he could be very influential for them in the World Cup as he is probably more important to the team than Fabio Cannavaro. Chiellini has the potential to become one of the world’s best defenders and his leadership qualities make him a potential future captain for both his club and his country.

He is certainly good enough to play for Manchester United, but with Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic at the club there doesn’t seem to be any real reason for them to buy Chiellini. They also have Jonny Evans coming through the ranks and Cheillini certainly wouldn’t be going there to sit on the bench. Although Ferdinand struggled with injury problems last season it doesn’t mean by any stretch that he is finished, and at 31 years of age he will feel like he still has plenty to offer United.

The player’s agent Davide Lippi, son of current Italy manager Marcello has denied any interest from United, declaring:

“I have never heard from Manchester United and I don't know anything.”

He added: “I am waiting for a call from Juventus in relation to an extension, but no-one has contacted us.”

Based on these comments it seems as though Chiellini wants to remain in Turin, and given that it would be hard for him to break into the United team it seems to be the likely scenario. The fact that his agent has denied any interest from Manchester United in the first place makes you think that the speculation was built up to try and get his client a better deal at the club. His current contract runs out in 2013, so with three years left to run there doesn’t seem to be any problem regarding Chiellini’s long term future so it looks to be all a financial matter.

It would be very surprising to see Giorgio Chiellini making the move to Manchester this summer or indeed anywhere as he has become a symbol of Juventus. Given that the previous and current symbols like Alessandro Del Piero, Pavel Nedved and Gianluigi Buffon have either ended or look set to end their careers at the club it looks as though Chiellini will be staying for some years to come.

Follow me on Twitter

Get the latest Italian Serie A news on Twitter