Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli pictured meeting Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck — report

As we await the Europa League final that promises to be exhilarating, emotional and certainly intense, like most London derbies, there are potentially notable developments taking place away from the limelight, as it usually happens in the clandestine world of football.

The speculation over Maurizio Sarri’s future for example has stepped up a notch with Tuttosport’s latest “Esclusive”, which shows Andrea Agnelli meeting with Bruce Buck.

The two club chairmen have plenty of reason to meet of course. Agnelli is also serving as chairman of the European Club Association (ECA), which is the successor organization to the G-14, i.e. the association of Europe’s biggest teams. Chelsea are a founding member of the ECA.

The meeting could just as well be about Gonzalo Higuaín, too, who’s technically a Juventus player still (and will hopefully remain so). Whatever the reason, be that coincidence, random chance, other business, or laying the groundwork for Maurizio Sarri, the meeting’s certainly not nothing, especially as there are conflicting reports about whether Agnelli will actually attend the match or not.

Previous reports indicated that Chelsea would not stand in Sarri’s way if he wanted to leave, though Juventus would have to pay some sort of compensation, probably around €5m. According to the Daily Mail, Juventus players “have been told” already to expect Sarri next season.