Tuttomercato reported that Borussia Dortmund followed Matteo Palma closely in the past months before directing their attention to Joane Gadou. Gadou was purchased from Salzburg for about 19.5 million euros.

Udinese has refused concrete offers of around 30 million euros for Matteo Palma, an 18-year-old German-Italian centre-back, from both Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen, as the club does not intend to sell him this summer. In recent weeks, there has also been interest in the player from all Italian clubs, including Inter, Milan, and Juventus. Udinese's position was supported by the player signing a contract extension on July 20th, which binds him to the club until 2031. Palma, who joined Udinese in July 2024 and recently returned from a loan spell at Sampdoria, has a current market value of €6.50m according to Transfermarkt.