Juventus half term report

With the focus of most Juventini now recovered from the drink fuelled Christmas revelry, and once more finding pride, glee and excitement in a brief glance at the league table, another sneaky peek at the champions league group stage final standings and draw for the next round...and for those of an even more optimistic demeanour, why not for dessert find a smile for the fixture list for the Italian cup leading to the glorious daydream, for the first time in many years, of the possibility of a treble capture of all top honours available; it seems a prudent juncture to take stock of our current situation and prepare ourselves for the onslaught of rumours, smoke screens, bizarre and horrible mentions of Borriello, and most likely one or two alterations to the make-up of our squad.

My voice was one of the many screaming 'COMPLACENCY', sporadically through the first few months of the season. Whilst we looked wonderful after emerging from our shell against reigning European champions Chelsea, and in several commanding and comfortable victories in the league, there were a handful of matches (fiorentina/Inter/Milan/Nordsjaelland/Shaktar) in which for the first time since before Conte appeared on the scene, we looked shaky, shy, unsure, lacking that incredible tenacity and zeal and belief which our former captain turned all conquering manager literally forced into the veins of everyone involved last season. Of course...much of this apparent deficit of zest can likely be put down to the absence of the man just mentioned. We were affected by his ridiculous ban, and at times, during the Carrera/Allessio caretaker period, it appeared that we might lose our way. We didn't. Conte returned to find his team first in the league, through to the second round of the premier European competition as group winners, and gaining momentum game by game...Normal service has since been resumed.


Credit must be given to both caretakers, as well as the players themselves, for how amazingly well they handled such a bleak and cruel set of circumstances. It would not surprise any of us to see Conte now lead his army into a stampede on the league and domestic cup, and push hard as hell in Europe. He has a point to prove...NOT that he is innocent (anyone other than the nasty cretins who convicted him, who is aware of even the basic premise of the charges which led to his suspension, then appeal, then reduction, will surely find his slate as clean as it has always been), moreover, that he is a natural born leader of men and he is hurt, as are his men. Added incentive to demolish all in our path...Enough eulogizing the great man, and the greatest Juve we have seen since 2006. Although its fun, and feel so happily Right.

Beppe Marotta and his head henchman Fabio Paratici have slowly been working their magic at Juventus since taking over from the rightly maligned Allessio Secco. Its taken time to move on most of the dead wood, bring in fresh and eager blood, whilst maintaining improvement and quality in the core of the first team. The results of their work have been clearly evident and deserve praise, for any team put together with a new manager and several personnel changes in key positions, total alteration of tactics, coming off two consecutive seasons of abject failure, to then go on to win the domestic title, undefeated is nothing short of magnificent.

Beppe and his people were responsible for bringing to the club the likes of Lichsteiner, Vidal, Pirlo, Quagiarella, the former goal-scoring Matri, Vucinic, Bonucci and Barzagli. Of all their acquisitions, perhaps Pirlo was the most magical move in the transfer market of any Juve transfer director for decades...Who has achieved and played such a pivotal role in such instant glory since we signed Roberto Baggio from arch rivals Fiorentina??? Even Zizou took time to find his feet(for reasons of adjustment mainly)...Last season, Andrea Pirlo regained the kind of form and fitness which reminded the world that he is one of the finest players of all time.

Most of the moves mentioned above occurred during the Summer of 2011. What happened the following Summer, when the dynamic duo of Marotta and Paratici were

asked to streamline more of the fat, bring in more lean, mean fighting muscle and try to find a world class addition to our front line????

Asamoah and Isla were very sensible moves. Giovinco's return to the fold was understandable, if somewhat pricey, but he had earned his chance. One of the most exciting additions to our player roster was Paul Pogba, swiped from right under the rosy red snout of Man United's Alex Ferguson (with a little help from Pavel Nedved's old buddy, Mino Raiola). The French international was widely regarded as one of the brightest young talents in world football. A major coup, by any measure.

There were also some interesting purchases made with one eye on the future, namely the arrival in Turin of explosive Ghanaian striker Richmond Boakye, a hefty chunk of gold paid for one leg of Manolo Gabbadini and finally the intriguing capture of Brazilian Cruzeiro starlet, Leo Bonatini (when was the last time we paid $EU5m for a 17 year old???). Add to these moves the development of Gabriel Appelt and Ouasim Buoy and the subsequent loan and co-own moves of the majority of these players to aid their chances of gaining regular first team action; the club structure as a whole appeared bright and brimming with potential.

Of the players signed for our first team squad, we must again doff our hats in reverence to Beppe and the coaching staff.

Our flanks have blossomed over these last two seasons from fragile to rock solid. First Lichsteiner came in to own the right fullback position, powering his way through his first campaign in our colours like a berserker on crystal meth. And then the unexpected transformation of Asamoah into a LWB strong enough to offer a beautiful balance to the width of both our attack and defence. The Ghanaian has proved a revelation, and at 24 years of age, he has so much time to improve further.

His comrade signed from Udinese, the similarly aged Mauricio Isla, has unfortunately not yet recovered fully enough from injury to show what he is capable of in the few outings he has been offered. With Martin Caceres vying for a chance behind Lichsteiner, its been a tricky start to Isla's Juve career. When played, the Chilean has looked off the pace and less than comfortable. Still, its needlessly harsh to yet condemn his transfer as a failure, and from the tifoso point of view; we are hardly weak in his RWB position. With Chiellini's nasty injury perhaps Caceres will be given more time in one of the CB positions, allowing Isla to continue his recuperation and return to form as Lichsteiner's back-up and challenger.

Pogba has been gold. Throughout his seven starts and eight substitute appearances the Frenchman has displayed impressive composure, technique and strength which belie his tender 19 years. As with the signing of Bonatini, its wonderful to see the club chasing players of Pogba's calibre; hugely talented youth who we are prepared to give a chance to if they show enough in training. How far can Paul go??? If he is content to remain in the comfortable for now shadow of Marchiso and Vidal, also filling in for Pirlo on occasion, and we can keep him happy, part of a winning side, we could have a world class midfielder within a year or three. A brilliant signing.

Which leaves us la formica atomica. The subject of much discussion, both positive and negative amongst Juventini since he burst onto the scene as a bright eyed imp with quick feet and an eye for spectacular goals. His history need not be repeated here, only his 8 goals and 5 assists from 19 starts and 8 appearances from the bench and the steadily improving form behind those respectable statistics. Yes, he should have more goals to his name, but continues to create, to threaten, to tire and bewilder the opposition and most importantly perhaps, to find himself in goal scoring opportunities every game he starts. Harshly criticized by many, as for my money, he has been our most potent player in the final third. And seems to have won the trust of the management to regularly be deployed as a starting striker alongside his often far less potent Montenegrin team-mate Mirko Vucinic.

Before sizing up our potential moves in the Winter mercato, two important factors must be noted. Firstly, the injury to Chiellini which will keep him out of action for 2-3 terrifying months. Secondly the absence of Asamoah due to his participation in the African Cup of Nations, which could steal his strength from our left flank from mid January until mid February.

Is our squad equipped to bear the weight of Chiellini's injury lay-off????

Bonucci and especially Barzagli are both classy players, but who partners them in the middle is a question not easy to answer. We have options. Young Luca Marrone has performed, on the whole, very well as a converted ball playing centre back. Caceres is dependable though happier as a marauding fullback. Lichsteiner could slot in there, as could Vidal, both at somewhat of a waste to the team's balance and power. It could have been a good time to see some of Lucio, but as luck would have it, his contract was rescinded by mutual consent only a week or so prior to the Chiellini injury.

King Giorgio's loss is huge, for his experience, exceptional strength on the turf and in the air, but at least we have possible replacements, and who can say for sure that he won't return to the ranks before the return leg of the Champions league second round on March 6th (he is banned for the first game of the tie). The situation with Asamoah is different in that we have no viable replacement presently in the squad...

Some will wail 'what of our beloved Paolino, you cruel fool!!!', but I am no fan of the doppelganger of Damien from The Omen. We are apparently mere inches away from signing Federico Peluso from Atalanta... At $EU3-5m, the defender comfortable at LWB/LB/CB is a huge improvement upon De Ceglie defensively, and likely a valuable upgrade on the long serving Juventino offensively...He can pass the ball in a straight line, understands positioning, is of a robust physical form, good height, decent pace and can tackle. Very experienced, has first hand knowledge of Conte's methods and character...I am still not 100% certain that De Ceglie will never amount to much, but at Juve, he has had far too many chances to shine already, and has simply never managed to progress/mature/develop, under several managers, in several very different looking teams. I will wish him well when he departs, for he has a wonderful attitude...but in terms of his position LB/LWB, he is hugely the weakest link in our squad. I'd rather put Asamoah/Chiellini/Padoin before him in the pecking order for the LWB slot.

As for the defence, we are in the process of securing the signature of much talked of Botafogo centre back, Doria, 18. It seems highly unlikely that he would be purchased in view of soon gaining a starting spot. The Brazilian game is vastly different and at 18, he lacks experience...If Lucio was unable to adapt to Conte's back three, it seems pure fantasy to expect Doria to do just that, within days or weeks...Then again, if Pogba was given the chance, why not Doria??? Its not even clear, as of yet, whether his purchase will be for January or the Summer. Adding a CB makes sense, given the departure of Lucio, but the Botafogo stopper is not what is needed to plug the Chiellini gap...Siena's Neto has also been mentioned as has perennial favourite for the media but not the club, Salvatore Bocchetti, who appears always the first to beg for a return to his homeland at the start of every transfer window, yet remains stuck, in his Rubin Kazan prison.


The midfield needs no tinkering. Its already one of the best in our solar system. Nobody is touching Buffon, and with Storari fit and dependable behind him, two very encouraging kids in Leali and Branescu, we have no need to change the status quo in this position. Which leaves...the same problem we were aiming to fix in the Summer but ran out of steam and options when the curtain began to close, so miserably, that all we could manage was a loan for Danish striker Nikolas Bendtner. The Arsenal forward has worked hard when given a run out but failed to impress sufficiently before suffering a nasty injury in December for us to have any hopes of his Juve career lengthening beyond the expiry of his loan deal.

Much has been written of Drogba. Who fits the bill in terms of eligibility for the champions league, incredibly high level of experience and success at the very top, but he is old, and earning such astronomical wages that surely only severe depression in his Chinese palace could draw him to our trenches.

Llorente is unfortunately too honourable to push for a transfer, and the likelihood is that Athletic Bilbao will stick to their guns regardless of his wishes, as is their choice.

They would rather miss out on at the very least $EU5-10 million, perhaps a lot more if a bidding war ensued, than break their own code which means they are never held to ransom by a player. They can afford to be like this, financially and also culturally, given their heavy and worthy of respect in many ways policy of signing only Basque players. They don't need millions to put towards signing world class players from elsewhere...Its simply not the way they operate, as a business or club.

We may well have to wait until the Summer to once again begin our search for the missing piece of the Juve puzzle, the golden fleece of a world class striker, clinical as much as a cut above the vast majority of his peers. With Quagiarella, Giovinco, Vucinic and Matri we have enough flair to maintain our control of Serie A, but still lack the quality of the front lines of the big boys left in Europe. We will be relying heavily upon Matri rediscovering his poachers touch. As our only recognized prima punta, its a risk...a lesser risk no doubt, to Beppe and Conte, than spending big on a Drogba, or Llorente. The latter we could sign this month, in preparation for a Summer move for $0. If Beppe can attract Andrea Pirlo on a free, I have high hopes he has a great chance of persuading the Spaniard to make the move to Juve. He will be not quite guaranteed a starting spot, but with Matri and Vucinic as the main competition, his chances will be high of walking straight into the first XI, into a team returning to their majestic dominance domestically and fearsome reputation on the European stage. What more could he want??? Only more $$$...

Other players mentioned include David Villa...more interestingly Edin Dzeko (whose move could only ever materialize via City acquiring yet another forward first, leaving even less room for the Bosnian hotshot who many feel would fit in perfectly in Conte's Juve, in our Juve).

I am already proud of the club for their efforts thus far this term. We are top of the league by an incredible 8 points. We have weathered the storm of losing Conte from match days and now he is back where he belongs, always and in all ways the heartbeat of our team and club. Peluso can cover Asamoah's absence and then prove a useful Padoin-esque squad player. Marrone or Caceres can step up in place of Chiellini. If we also bring in Doria, one of the future, it will be a solid mercato. And if somehow, looking far from possible presently, we bring in LLorente, it will be a wonderful mercato. Considering our present position, one could argue we need no more than what we seem set upon purchasing...The Striker situation can wait until the Summer. Until then, I am more than content with finding confidence and hope for a very bright future in our current squad with an added Peluso.

Forza Juve.

Welcome to the froums bro, I enjoyed reading this.

welcome

Cheers for the warm welcome, folks...And I am glad that my rantings and ravings are well received. I write regular reports of the most interesting of our youth players in the primavera and loaned/co-owned at other clubs, so if its OK with those who run the forum, I would very much like to contribute here...

Welcome Man & thanks for the read...
Like the pics

thegutterpoet wrote:Cheers for the warm welcome, folks...And I am glad that my rantings and ravings are well received. I write regular reports of the most interesting of our youth players in the primavera and loaned/co-owned at other clubs, so if its OK with those who run the forum, I would very much like to contribute here...

(I usually share my reports here>
http://lavecchiasignoranet.tumblr.com/
so check back for some older news, if interested, and from now on I will put my new stuff in the goal legacy forums as well...if its allowed!)

I am one of the admins and I would like to inform you that sharing other forums is forbidden here on GL, but you can share your articles here.

No problem, Devi...I've changed the post accordingly.