Nedved: "Conte, a true star" (1 Viewer)

Marty

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Jul 2, 2005
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Pavel Nedved knows a thing or two when it comes to potential Scudetto deciders. He’s played in and won a fair few himself. And if even he says that the Napoli v Juventus game on Friday night will be 'delicate', but not decisive, then you have to believe him: "It’s not going to be a match point in the title race," the former Ballon d'Or winner told Sky Sport Italia. "'Match point' means the 'decisive point' in the season – there are still 11 games to go and there's still everything to play for. Napoli have some excellent players, some world-class players, as well as an excellent coach. They can win the Scudetto just as much as we can. The game will be important, but there’ll be a lot more games after it."
He still remembers the matches he used to play at the San Paolo when a Juventus player: "You could really feel the pressure from the crowd then. Playing in such an atmosphere is the best any player could hope for and it’s exceptional to feel that first hand. The games are always good ones and I always enjoy them, as a player before and now as a club official. During the 2006/07 season Juve and Napoli were both playing in Serie B and today they find themselves battling with each other for the Scudetto: that means that both clubs have worked exceptionally hard since then."
And Antonio Conte continues to work exceptionally hard too. He’s a "true star" according to Nedved. "I really like his way of thinking. He manages to get his humility across and that leads to successful results. A comparison with Lippi and Capello? His relative youth means that he hasn’t won as much as them as a coach yet, but he’ll no doubt catch up with them. He’s one of the best. To become a top coach you have to be able to get your ideas across to the players, to get your personality across. He knows how to do that, and when I go to the stadium and watch Juve play, I really enjoy myself. The side has strength of character, it presses the opposition, the players are always looking to score."
In essence, a Juve with no limitations: "A good side shouldn’t have any limitations," Nedved added. "A good side should always try to achieve every single one of its objectives. The only limit this side could have is its limited experience in the Champions League. Many of the players have never played in the competition before, but they are doing well and learning quickly and starting to earn a lot of respect in Europe too. Winning the Scudetto and getting to the Champions League final? We managed that in 2003, but that was a long time ago. 10 years have passed since then… It isn’t easy trying to focus on getting far in a number of competitions [in the same season], but I’m satisfied with the path this side is taking."
Nedved is tremendously proud of the Bianconeri and when he’s asked about the possibility of new signings in attack, his answer is very direct: "Our forwards are very good. I keep hearing about ‘top players’, but our lads have always answered exceptionally when they've been called on. It’s very difficult to find forwards better than the ones we have anyway."
As for the midfield, Juventus don’t have many rivals at all. A player such as Nedved would fit in really well into Conte’s side. Pavel did, however, hang up his football boots a long time ago and now he has a different but equally important role to play at Juve: "I don’t like to look back at things too much. I stopped playing football four seasons ago and I have to think like a club official now, not like a football player. My transition from player to club official was a natural one, but everything is different and you can’t just make up your mind to become a club official overnight. There are a lot of things to learn and that’s what I’m doing. I’m only at the beginning. All I want to do now is enjoy watching this team and our midfield, which is one of the best in Europe."
A good team needs a good leader. Juve have many, in every single part of the pitch. And, in Gigi Buffon, they have an extraordinary point of reference: "He’s always been a leader. He’d always speak with his team-mates when times got tough and as he’s one of the most experienced players we have, the younger players can look up to him and find a lot of support. Gigi is incredible: he started his footballing career at a very young age, but he still manages to find the right motivation. That means that he’s one of the greats, not only on a sporting level, but also from the point of view of his mental strength. He’s having an exceptional season. Should we manage to win the Champions League it would be an immense pleasure for me - and a rightful reward for a player who has done so much for his club and for football in general. He deserves it. But so do his team-mates, they deserve it just as much. They are an extraordinary group of players. But they still have a long way to go before they can say that they’ve reached the top."


Source: Juventus.com
 

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