Q: Will you sign Romero & De Ligt?
Paratici "With Romero, the situation is well addressed. De Ligt? He is surely one of the best young players out there., and we are following him with great attention."
Paratici on the CR7 deal "It all started when we played Real in the CL. I met Mendes, like I always do & he told me: You may not believe it but if Cristiano leaves Real he'd want to join Juve, remember it is less complicated than you think. Then I started to study the move. Then during the talks to close a deal for the phenomenal Cancelo, Mendes looked at me & said: Remember what we talked about? You'll see that Ronaldo is going to leave Real, and I tell you more, he only wants to join Juve. If you want him, he is ready. Then in our next meeting I asked Mendes: so what figures are we talking about? He replied: this is the salary & this is the transfer fee. So I told him I would get back to him in a few days, because if I had said no, he would've contacted other clubs. They were hours of extreme tension & energy. Many thoughts started crossed my mind: we have Higuain who we'll need to sell, but Ronaldo is star who will open various channels: technical & commercial. Finally I convinced myself that we must at least try. Up to this point, I had not told anything to anyone (at Juve). Then we (Juve management) had a meeting in June & I though about Buffon leaving, the team having won 7 Scudetti, and having had tough CL exit: so something had to be done to motivate the squad. Football is technique but also passion. It requires talent but also a mentality. So I met with Andrea (Agnelli) & Pavel (Nedved) and we all agreed. We must give the entire environment a shock. A positive shock that can project Juve over certain limits. So I told Andrea & Pavel: I have an idea...and it is yet to be evaluated, so do not laugh & do not throw yourselves out of the window. There are 2 ways to motivate the team: one which I cannot disclose now & the other is to sign Cristiano Ronaldo. The first way? It was to buy Icardi & unleash an incredible fiasco..or we can sign Cristiano Ronaldo. Andrea looked at me & smiled. I immediately told him: wait, let me explain. Because at that point no one believed that CR7 can be signed for the amount Mendes told me. So I told Andrea & Pavel: Mendes told me to tell you that if Juve wants Cristiano & meets his demands, he is going to come to Juventus. He does not want anyone else other than Juventus. There's no option B. He only wants Juve. There was silence. You must also understand that Andrea is not just a president. He knows football & business very well. And always wants to make Juventus bigger. So he said: give me a moment to think about it. At that point I was happy I wasn't thrown out the window! In the same day, during the afternoon, he told me to confirm all the numbers that we had discussed, because if it was like I said it was, we are going to go forward with the operation."
Q: You mentioned 3 names...Andrea, Pavel & yourself. One is missing..
Paratici "Yes, during the first meeting where the idea was discussed, Marotta was not there. He was present in the 2nd. Was Marotta in favor of the move? Yes, I want to be clear here: he was never against it."
Paratici "Sorry to no longer work with Marotta? Yes. How long have we worked together? 15 years. A challenge between us in the mercato? We do two different jobs, that is the truth."
Q: Ronaldo apart, which player were you most proud to sign?
Paratici "Paulo Dybala. He was a difficult player to sign, & it was to replace Tevez, which wasn't easy. We had just played a CL final & were spending 40m on a Palermo player who had scored 13 goals. Was a bit scary."
Paratici "The most difficult sale I had to make? Llorente & Matri. Matri is a very polite boy, Llorente the same. I am the type of person who, when we need to sell a player, wouldn't like to be the one goes and says it to them."
Paratici "From a technical aspect, which player am I sorry to have sold? As a football player, I believe it was Vidal. A great talent. More than Pogba? Yes, with Pogba you're prepared, you resist then it eventually happens. Vidal was one of us, started with us from the 1st year."
Paratici "Will Pogba return to Juventus? No. In football you never know, but I think it is very difficult."
Paratici "Ramsey? We signed him because he's a player that's different to the ones we have. Has more technique, but less defensive & tactical. I think Ramsey has never found his best position, because he hasn't played as a Mezzala in a 3-man CM. That's his position."
Paratici "Szoboszlai? A talented boy, but we would need to find a Serie A team that would let him play many games."
Paratici "Young Italian players that I like? Zaniolo, Chiesa, Barella & Tonali."
Paratici "Tonali like Pirlo? Tonali is a superb boy. Serious, professional & talented. But has different characteristics. No one is comparable to Pirlo. He was the player who played the best football I've ever seen. I don't think in the next 35 yrs we'll see someone like Pirlo."
Paratici "Allegri stays? Of course he does. I don't really see a better coach."
Paratici "The match vs Atletico? It will be difficult because we play a great team. In these past years only god knows how much effort we have put in to naturally feel among the best European clubs. Today's Juve has no right to fear anyone, and no right to underestimate anybody."
Paratici "James Rodriguez? Certainly a great player, we must see. Improving a squad like ours is not easy. To improve on Dybala, Costa, Cuadrado & Bernardeschi is really hard. The first thing someone like me must not do is damage. Might sound easy, but it is not."
Paratici "People say the previous January market has paid for Cristiano's transfer? No, it's not like that. At the economic level, Cristiano has already paid for himself. Look at the data from the Financial Times, or Juve's global image, or the merchandising. CR7 was a bargain."
Paratici "Dybala stays? Surely. Those who leave are those who want to. I repeat our squad is difficult to improve. Who do you get that is better than Dybala? It's difficult to sign Messi. Even with Neymar I'd have doubts. Dybala is someone who is always there, until the end."
Paratici "Moise Kean? A great forward. He's one of those who will sooner or later start scoring in the CL. We're going to be seeing him for some time. He is now at Juventus because he is at that level, we're not keeping him here to do him any favors. Has immense potential."
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Why don't we signed Frenkie De Jong if we gonna pay this kinda money???
really broke my heart this one & whenever he scores or assists for MU.
