So much has been written and said about who will leave/join Juventus in the summer.The rumour mills have been in overdrive no thanks to a very promising season that went bust without warning.Following last season's Champions League final hurdle capitulation,the empahsis in our pre-season acquisitions was on building a strong squad.Our recruitment was done with a view to ensuring that we had a squad strong enough to deal with the rigors of competing on three fronts;viz:the League,the Coppa Italia and of course the Champions League.Things were going according to plan until we lost two league games back to back,lost players to injury and an uncanny loss of form,fell off the pace in the Serie A and crashed out of the Champions League.
As I said earlier,a lot has already been said and written about the things we should do so as to bounce back into reckoning next season;allow me to share my thoughts on the issue.
GOALKEEPERS
I believe we are still okay in this area.Buffon is about the best there is and Chimenti is a decent cover.Considering Buffon's age and prospects,he is very likely- barring an inexplicable loss of form or death(God forbid!) to remain our No.1 for at least the next five years;therefore I doubt if we can find another big name who will be prepared to play second fiddle for that long.Our best bet therefore is to stick with the "aged" but still very handy substitute goalie type,or get a 17-19 year old guy to understudy Gigi and eventuallly succeed him.
Either way,I don't think we have anything to worry about in this department.
DEFENCE
Hmm......I think they'll get the most votes for our probable Achilles heel this season.The most frugal defence in the Serie A for quite a while now has suddenly become a charity.Loss of form,injuries and lack of midfield cover have exposed us in the back and now it's time for change.Knowing Juve and Mr Moggi,I don't think we will go on a defenders-buying spree.Actually,we might not need to yet.Here's why.
Thuram could be switched to centreback and given a new playmate in that position (anyone from Mexes,Lucio,Ferrari or Metzelder)We would keep Iuliano,Montero,Ferrara and Legrottaglie(let's give him a second chance) as back-up.
Having removed Thuram from rightback,we would need someone to fill his shoes- Hatem Trabelsi has said he'd love to play for us,Massimo Oddo is already used to playing at the top in Italy and Daniel Alves has shown a lot of promise.Anyone of these three with Birindelli as back-up would do.
On the left of defence Zambrotta is our only viable option for now.We DESPERATELY need back-up here.I have heard good things about Parisi in Serie B and I think he would be a good buy.
MIDFIELD
A lot has been said about our generous defence,but I think our midfield has to share in the blame.We have'nt been as strong in the middle of the park as we usually are.Edgar Davids has left and we have to move on.We need a midfield enforcer to partner Tacchinardi.While we wait for Appiah to re-discover himself,we could take a look at Dortmund's Christophe Metzelder( Ambrosini,Dacourt,Tommasi and Emerson would also fit perfectly-but I don't think their teams will sell to us)If Olivier Kapo eventually joins as has been rumoured,then perhaps we should just bring in our on loan youngsters(Brighi,Blasi and Gasbarroni)to bloom alongside a player I know could become really pivotal for Juve and the Azzuri - if he gets a chance;the one ,the only Enzo Maresca(excuse my exuberance,but I really think he is special)
CREATIVITY
Nedved is not finished!he's just having a bad patch-our Little Czech howitzer will be back!! However I think we need a younger understudy to him as well as an alternative.Camoranesi's inconsistency does not put my mind at rest,therefore it would'nt hurt to get a Pablo Aimar/Diego/Rosicky/Deco - not to replace Nedved,but to complement him.
ATTACK
If we can reach an agreement with Trezeguet,then he should stay.If he insists on leaving,then he should be allowed to go.If we can restructure our midfield to defend as well as attack and supply the forwards,then getting goals will not be a problem.Del Piero(love him or hate him) will stay.I also think we should keep Miccoli-he's another one to watch.I'm not sure about DiVaio-his inconsistency and the preponderance of " bantamweights " on our forwardline,count against him.If Trezeguet leaves,then maybe DiVaio should go as well and we can bring in Ibramovic,Kezman,Gillardino or Chevanton as well as bring back Zalayeta to give us power and presence upfront.
As I said earlier,a lot has already been said and written about the things we should do so as to bounce back into reckoning next season;allow me to share my thoughts on the issue.
GOALKEEPERS
I believe we are still okay in this area.Buffon is about the best there is and Chimenti is a decent cover.Considering Buffon's age and prospects,he is very likely- barring an inexplicable loss of form or death(God forbid!) to remain our No.1 for at least the next five years;therefore I doubt if we can find another big name who will be prepared to play second fiddle for that long.Our best bet therefore is to stick with the "aged" but still very handy substitute goalie type,or get a 17-19 year old guy to understudy Gigi and eventuallly succeed him.
Either way,I don't think we have anything to worry about in this department.
DEFENCE
Hmm......I think they'll get the most votes for our probable Achilles heel this season.The most frugal defence in the Serie A for quite a while now has suddenly become a charity.Loss of form,injuries and lack of midfield cover have exposed us in the back and now it's time for change.Knowing Juve and Mr Moggi,I don't think we will go on a defenders-buying spree.Actually,we might not need to yet.Here's why.
Thuram could be switched to centreback and given a new playmate in that position (anyone from Mexes,Lucio,Ferrari or Metzelder)We would keep Iuliano,Montero,Ferrara and Legrottaglie(let's give him a second chance) as back-up.
Having removed Thuram from rightback,we would need someone to fill his shoes- Hatem Trabelsi has said he'd love to play for us,Massimo Oddo is already used to playing at the top in Italy and Daniel Alves has shown a lot of promise.Anyone of these three with Birindelli as back-up would do.
On the left of defence Zambrotta is our only viable option for now.We DESPERATELY need back-up here.I have heard good things about Parisi in Serie B and I think he would be a good buy.
MIDFIELD
A lot has been said about our generous defence,but I think our midfield has to share in the blame.We have'nt been as strong in the middle of the park as we usually are.Edgar Davids has left and we have to move on.We need a midfield enforcer to partner Tacchinardi.While we wait for Appiah to re-discover himself,we could take a look at Dortmund's Christophe Metzelder( Ambrosini,Dacourt,Tommasi and Emerson would also fit perfectly-but I don't think their teams will sell to us)If Olivier Kapo eventually joins as has been rumoured,then perhaps we should just bring in our on loan youngsters(Brighi,Blasi and Gasbarroni)to bloom alongside a player I know could become really pivotal for Juve and the Azzuri - if he gets a chance;the one ,the only Enzo Maresca(excuse my exuberance,but I really think he is special)
CREATIVITY
Nedved is not finished!he's just having a bad patch-our Little Czech howitzer will be back!! However I think we need a younger understudy to him as well as an alternative.Camoranesi's inconsistency does not put my mind at rest,therefore it would'nt hurt to get a Pablo Aimar/Diego/Rosicky/Deco - not to replace Nedved,but to complement him.
ATTACK
If we can reach an agreement with Trezeguet,then he should stay.If he insists on leaving,then he should be allowed to go.If we can restructure our midfield to defend as well as attack and supply the forwards,then getting goals will not be a problem.Del Piero(love him or hate him) will stay.I also think we should keep Miccoli-he's another one to watch.I'm not sure about DiVaio-his inconsistency and the preponderance of " bantamweights " on our forwardline,count against him.If Trezeguet leaves,then maybe DiVaio should go as well and we can bring in Ibramovic,Kezman,Gillardino or Chevanton as well as bring back Zalayeta to give us power and presence upfront.
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