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Where Next For The Old Lady? Ben Tanzer looks at what lies in store for Juventus over the summer, and points towards a very careful balance they must strike.
Where Next For The Old Lady?
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Juventus, the Old Lady of Italian football have all but wrapped up the 2006/2007 Serie B trophy. They have an almost unassailable 7 point lead over Napoli with 7 games to go.
However, it has been a strange situation that the Bianconeri find themselves in, for they play in Serie B for the first time with quite possibly the youngest and weakest squad they have had in recent history. With an unchanged squad, it would be difficult to imagine them coming close to winning the Serie A next season.
So that begets the question, 'what next'? How do Juventus rebuild? Must they be ruthless, or should they show faith and patience, perhaps at the cost of immediate glory? The circumstances and fortunes of the players tied to Juventus will be worth keeping an eye on!
In the goalkeeping department number one Gianluigi Buffon has been strongly linked to a move to either one of the Milan teams. If he went, then that would leave Antonio Mirante and Emanuele Belardi. Mirante would certainly benefit from being number 1 or being loaned out to another club, but the club would judge the former option as one too risky. This would mean that they would have to buy a keeper. Perhaps swap deal involving some cash could work, though there are other fish in the sea. Gigi looks keen to leave, and making good money might not hurt, as they can probably bring in two good player.
Defenders raise interesting questions. Legrottaglie? He has never really lived up to the promise he showed at Chievo, and will most likely leave the club again in the summer, maybe this time for good. Players like Kovac, Boumsong, Zebina, Chiellini and Balzaretti have safe, assured places in a Serie A Juventus. Birindelli, Piccolo, Tudor and Legrottaglie would most likely be bit-part players or could leave the club altogether.
Ajax defender Zdanek Grygera is also coming in over the summer, and he will make a classy and interesting addition to the Bianconeri defence. However, come Serie A, and Thuram, Cannavaro and Zambrotta will be missed. There will surely have to be at least one more 'world class' defender they will need to sign. That will mean another faithful servant finding himself on the outer!
There is a lack of depth in midfield and there will most likely be many 'comings' and 'goings'. Once again, Vieira and Emerson will be missed. Stars like Nedved, Zanetti, Camoranesi and Marchionni will most likely stay, although Camoranesi is linked with Inter and Nedved could consider retirement. Anchor man Matteo Paro has had a great season in Turin but he may not be considered good enough to continue doing his job for Juventus against the likes of Milan and Roma.
Youngsters like Marchisio and Luci will find themselves in the Primavera team or farmed out to smaller clubs for experience. Giuliano Giannichedda is an interesting case, he was originally signed it seems to be a squad player, but has had more of a role to play this season after the departures of Vieira and Emerson. In the summer Juve will most likely sign a central midfielder to make Giannichedda redundant yet again. The Torsten Frings deal seems to be just a matter of time, and he will almost certainly hold down one of the two midfield spots (that will more than take care of Emerson's departure).
But what that will also do is make competition intense for the second berth, not something Juve will be unhappy with as such, except in that managing the squad will be a problem. Hasan Salihamidzic is also on the way in the summer from Bayern Munich, and will step in for Mauro Camoranesi should he leave the Old Lady. Lastly, Ruben Olivera deserves a recall and another chance after playing this season with Sampdoria. But then again, so do many others!
Juve's attacking force will probably need the least maintenance. Del Piero is the standard bearer of Juventus and will certainly stay. Trezeguet might possibly leave but then again possibly not, while Bojinov will return to Fiorentina (and possibly move on from there too).
Raffaele Palladino deserves an opportunity to play for Juventus in the top flight so could possibly stay on as a youthful backup. Zalayeta could stay on yet again for Juventus, he is loyal yet he does not play often or score often. Guzman and Volpato will most likely be loaned out; it will be very unlikely that the two of them will put on Juventus colours in the first team in 2007-2008.
Fabrizio Miccoli MUST be recalled. He has been in good form for Benfica and he surely deserves another crack at the Serie A with a club of Juventus' stature. Recalling Miccoli will also be cheaper than buying a striker. Another Juventus owned striker in good form is Ascoli's Michele Paolucci. He should also be considered by Deschamps.
To sum up, if Trezeguet stays, then he will partner Del Piero, and Zalayeta/Palladino, Miccoli and one other forward (who will not cause problems if on the bench) will do. All three could also stay on. If he leaves, Juve will have little option but to go in for 'hit man' Luca Toni, or a striker capable of delivering 20-25 Serie A goals in a season.
And lastly, the coach, Didier Deschamps: they need to trust him! He is a good coach but he needs time to adjust to Juventus in Serie A – it is quite different from coaching in Ligue 1 or Serie B. Juve must not expect him to be like Capello or Lippi. He is a different type of man ,and a different type of coach. It will be, arguably, the trickiest decision they will have to make.
This summer is sure to be interesting, particularly watching how the Turin giants go about things. There could be a few shock exits, the don't count out them poaching the odd player from direct Serie A rivals either. They will need to have a firm hand, and yet, show sensitivity for those who have fought for the Bianconeri cause when others left them in the lurch. It will be a delicate balance to strike!
Ben Tanzer
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