Back To Serie A!!! (9 Viewers)
- Thread starter ReBeL
- Start date
Juventus are back, with new team to build
Milan - The president and his managers tend to avoid it, but the word revenge circulates freely among old-guard players and fans of Juventus as they gear up for the return to the Serie A a year after their first-ever descent to the lower division. Three weeks before the season opener Saturday against Livorno, captain Alessandro Del Piero said he knew that "there are a lot of expectations, but we should not fear them. On the contrary, we must draw energy from them. For many of us it is a season for revenge."
And among the fans, Edmondo Berselli set aside his suit of polished political commentator to don Juve's black-white striped jersey and headline his piece on weekly l'Espresso: "Beware, the Zebras are back."
After the corruption trial that last summer found their former managers Luciano Moggi and Antonio Giraudo guilty of rigging whole seasons, the stripping of the 2005 and 2006 titles, and the humbling relegation, the Turin side look forward to show on the pitch that they are still the best and most winning team in the country.
Returning to the top flight was fairly easy for the Old Lady despite a nine-point deficit, but the season left them weakened by the diaspora of players like Fabio Cannavaro, Emerson, Patrick Vieira and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who wouldn't put up with a season in the Serie B.
Many new players arrived in the summer and coach Claudio Ranieri, also a new hire, has struggled throughout the pre-season to find the proper blend, warning that his side "is still behind AC Milan, (champions) Inter Milan and Roma."
"It takes humility and hard work," the former coach of Chelsea said. "If I consider that I have a new team, still in construction and with many young players, while the other (coaches) work on a material they know very well, I do not complain about where we stand.
"We are not up to par with Milan. Our goal is to qualify for the Champions League (next season), they have other ambitions."
President Giovanni Cobolli Gigli said that "even the fourth place would be fine," which entails a qualifying game to access the European tournament, and added that winning the title "is a dream."
Fans, though, have other expectations and in his article Berselli ventured into a scenario where the Zebras win two or three straight games at their return to the top flight.
"Then terror would spread," he wrote, "because then how would you explain, dear friends, that Juve, the lady of rigged titles, still wins without Moggi's plots?"
Cautiously, Berselli limited his optimism to the first three games against Livorno, Cagliari and Udinese, as the fourth, away to Roma will be somewhat tougher to win.
To be even more cautious, fans should consider that Juve's defence conceded 10 goals in nine pre-season games. Beginning Saturday, new defenders Zdenek Grygera and Jorge Andrade must find the best agreement with a midfield that numbers Sergio Almiron, Tiago Cardoso Mendes and Hasan Salihamidzic as new arrivals.
International Vincenzo Iaquinta has a chance to prove his worth alongside veteran Del Piero and David Trezeguet, while goalkeeping still rests in the reliable hands of world champion Gianluigi Buffon.
An advantage for Juve is their absence from the upcoming Champions League, a loss on the financial level which, however, allows them a more relaxed schedule than the other top teams.
DPA
Milan - The president and his managers tend to avoid it, but the word revenge circulates freely among old-guard players and fans of Juventus as they gear up for the return to the Serie A a year after their first-ever descent to the lower division. Three weeks before the season opener Saturday against Livorno, captain Alessandro Del Piero said he knew that "there are a lot of expectations, but we should not fear them. On the contrary, we must draw energy from them. For many of us it is a season for revenge."
And among the fans, Edmondo Berselli set aside his suit of polished political commentator to don Juve's black-white striped jersey and headline his piece on weekly l'Espresso: "Beware, the Zebras are back."
After the corruption trial that last summer found their former managers Luciano Moggi and Antonio Giraudo guilty of rigging whole seasons, the stripping of the 2005 and 2006 titles, and the humbling relegation, the Turin side look forward to show on the pitch that they are still the best and most winning team in the country.
Returning to the top flight was fairly easy for the Old Lady despite a nine-point deficit, but the season left them weakened by the diaspora of players like Fabio Cannavaro, Emerson, Patrick Vieira and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who wouldn't put up with a season in the Serie B.
Many new players arrived in the summer and coach Claudio Ranieri, also a new hire, has struggled throughout the pre-season to find the proper blend, warning that his side "is still behind AC Milan, (champions) Inter Milan and Roma."
"It takes humility and hard work," the former coach of Chelsea said. "If I consider that I have a new team, still in construction and with many young players, while the other (coaches) work on a material they know very well, I do not complain about where we stand.
"We are not up to par with Milan. Our goal is to qualify for the Champions League (next season), they have other ambitions."
President Giovanni Cobolli Gigli said that "even the fourth place would be fine," which entails a qualifying game to access the European tournament, and added that winning the title "is a dream."
Fans, though, have other expectations and in his article Berselli ventured into a scenario where the Zebras win two or three straight games at their return to the top flight.
"Then terror would spread," he wrote, "because then how would you explain, dear friends, that Juve, the lady of rigged titles, still wins without Moggi's plots?"
Cautiously, Berselli limited his optimism to the first three games against Livorno, Cagliari and Udinese, as the fourth, away to Roma will be somewhat tougher to win.
To be even more cautious, fans should consider that Juve's defence conceded 10 goals in nine pre-season games. Beginning Saturday, new defenders Zdenek Grygera and Jorge Andrade must find the best agreement with a midfield that numbers Sergio Almiron, Tiago Cardoso Mendes and Hasan Salihamidzic as new arrivals.
International Vincenzo Iaquinta has a chance to prove his worth alongside veteran Del Piero and David Trezeguet, while goalkeeping still rests in the reliable hands of world champion Gianluigi Buffon.
An advantage for Juve is their absence from the upcoming Champions League, a loss on the financial level which, however, allows them a more relaxed schedule than the other top teams.
DPA
![Juventino[RUS]](https://www.juventuz.com/data/avatars/m/5/5409.jpg?1650619365){kind=avatar}
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Boumsong.
