Cairo happy to finally get Simeone, but Elmas unlikely for Torino | OneFootball

Torino President Urbano Cairo reveals he has been trying to sign Giovanni Simeone since 2017, but they are unlikely to get Eljif Elmas from RB Leipzig.

It has been a busy day for the Granata, who officially secured Simeone from Napoli.

That agreement is a loan for circa €1.5m with an option to buy for a further €5.5m plus easy to achieve add-ons, reaching the full fee of €8m.

Cairo content with new Torino signing

Giovanni Simeone signs for Torino from Napoli (torinofc)

“I am very happy, I’ve been tracking him for a lifetime,” Cairo told Tuttomercatoweb.

“I remember talking about Simeone to Genoa in 2017, before he made the move to Genoa. I’ve been following him ever since then and this year he was finally available. I’d asked Napoli in the past, but they didn’t want to sell.”

There are more deals to be done on the transfer market this summer, but it doesn’t seem as if the return of Elmas will be one of them.

The 25-year-old spent the last six months at Torino on loan from RB Leipzig and there were negotiations to make it permanent.

PARMA, ITALY – MARCH 08: Eljif Elmas of Torino competes for the ball with Nahuel Estévez of Parma calcio during the Serie A match between Parma and Torino at Stadio Ennio Tardini on March 08, 2025 in Parma, Italy. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)

However, when pressed on whether the Elmas option had been abandoned, Cairo admitted there was little room for further changes.

“We already have some alternatives on the wings and they are first choices all over the park. We’ll see, the transfer market always has surprises, but now the team really is 95 per cent done and I am very happy.”

The team has been revamped to suit the ideas of new coach Marco Baroni, who was at Lazio last season.