Juventus FC Forum (Stadio Delle Alpi) [Archive] - Page 19

denzatu

26-05-2009, 06:20 AM

エロエロ (http://xn--ickth.prisonerappreciationsociety.com/) エロ
エロ動画エロ動画 (http://xn--icktho51ho02a.beijingyupeng.com/) エロ動画
エロ動画エロ動画 (http://xn--icktho51ho02a.adultvz.com/) エロ動画
エロエロ (http://erosite01.com/) エロサイト
エロ画像エロ画像 (http://erogazou01.com/) エロ画像
エロエロ (http://ero009.com/) エロ
エロ動画エロ動画 (http://www.eroanim.com/) エロ動画
エロエロ (http://www.denzatu.com/ero/) エロ
エロエロ (http://www.erodenz.com/) エロ
エロエロ (http://xn--n8j214ginb1xae68o.dailyderi.com/) エロ
系サイト一覧
アダルトビデオアダルトビデオ (http://xn--cckq9d2ae0ewi.fuuzokuz.com/) アダルトビデオ
アダルト動画アダルト動画 (http://xn--cck0cya3lt22pve5b.denzatu.com/)アダルト動画
アダルト動画アダルト動画 (http://xn--cck0cya3lt22pve5b.hitozumaz.com/) アダルト動画
アダルトアダルト (http://xn--cck0cya3l.prisonerappreciationsociety.com/) アダルト
アダルト動画アダルト動画 (http://adultdoug.com/) アダルト動画
アダルトアダルト (http://adultdenz.com/) アダルト
アダルトビデオアダルトビデオ (http://www.adultvz.com/) アダルトビデオ
無修正無修正 (http://xn--8uq428d76d.beijingyupeng.com/) 無修正
無修正無修正 (http://xn--8uq428d76d.adultvz.com/)無修正
無修正動画無修正動画 (http://www.musyuuseid.com/) 無修正動画
無修正無修正 (http://musyuse.com/) 無修正
セックスセックス (http://sexdez.com/) セックス
セックスフレンド (http://www.denzatu.com/shelove/)
セックスセックス (http://sexfrined01.com/)
セックスセックス (http://xn--pckuae6a.eroanim.com/) セックス
セックスセックス (http://www.beijingyupeng.com/) セックス
セックスセックス (http://xn--pckuae6a6a9d9h5b.eroanim.com/) セックス
エッチエッチ (http://www.denzatu.com/) エッチ
エッチエッチ (http://www.htaiken.com/) エッチ
エッチエッチ (http://www.hanime2.com/) エッチ
H H (http://www.artyukiti.com/) H
エッチエッチ (http://xn--g9jyhxch.jp) エッチ
エロ動画エロ動画 (http://xn--g9jyhzh.jp) エロ動画
えっちえっち (http://www.etuti.com/) えっち
おまんこおまんこ (http://omannk.com/) おまんこ
おめこおめこ (http://omekoz.com/) おめこ
オナニーオナニー (http://onalog.com/) オナニー
熟女熟女 (http://ziyukuzyo.com/) 熟女
ロリコンロリコン (http://rorlikon.com/) ロリコン
SM SM (http://smden.com/) SM
出会い出会い (http://xn--n8j214gc5b.prisonerappreciationsociety.com/)出会いたいすべての出会いサービスを無料で提供しております。
出会い系サイト出会い系サイト (http://xn--n8jwkwb3d155rfvd4q9g.artyukiti.com/)出会い系サイト
出会い系サイト出会い系サイト (http://xn--n8jwkwb3d155rfvd4q9g.denzatu.com/) 出会い系サイト
無料出会い無料出会い (http://xn--n8j214gc5bb84ayfn.artyukiti.com/) 無料出会い
優良出会い優良出会い (http://xn--n8j214ginb1xae68o.dailyderi.com/) 優良出会い
出会い系サイト出会い系サイト (http://xn--n8jwkwb3d155rfvd4q9g.souplannd.com/) 出会い系サイト
出会いカフェ出会いカフェ (http://xn--n8j2kla2o230mfvd.fuuzokuz.com/) 出会いカフェ
待ち合わせ待ち合わせ (http://xn--b9jl2lx66ld9l.erodenz.com/) 待ち合わせ
出会いサクラ出会いサクラ (http://xn--n8j1lra3s544lfvd.erodenz.com/) 出会いサクラ
出会い攻略出会い攻略 (http://xn--n8j214gc5bnx4afps.musyuuseid.com/) 出会い攻略
出会い相談出会い相談 (http://xn--n8j214gc5bmu3dpyu.musyuuseid.com/) 出会い相談
無料出会い無料出会い (http://xn--n8j214gc5bb84ayfn.beijingyupeng.com/) 無料出会い
出会い出会い (http://deai001.com/) 出会い
出会い系サイト出会い系サイト (http://deaike.com/)出会い系サイト
セフレセフレ (http://sefre01.com/) セフレが集うサイト
セフレセフレ (http://www.prisonerappreciationsociety.com/)セフレ
セフレセフレ (http://xn--1ck9b7c.hitozumaz.com/) セフレ
出会い攻略出会い攻略 (http://deaiko.com/) 出会い攻略
待ち合わせ待ち合わせ (http://matiaw.com/) 待ち合わせ
無料出会い無料出会い (http://murilyo.com/) 無料出会い
優良出会い優良出会い (http://yurilyou.com/) 優良出会い
出会い相談出会い相談 (http://deaiso.com/) 出会い相談
出会い体験談出会い体験談 (http://deait.com/) 出会い体験談
出会いマニュアル出会いマニュアル (http://deaima.com/) 出会いマニュアル
恋人恋人 (http://koibito01.com/) 恋人
悪徳出会い悪徳出会い (http://akutokudeai.com/) 悪徳出会い
出会いサクラ出会いサクラ (http://deaisa.com/) 出会いサクラ
出会いカフェ出会いカフェ (http://deaika.com/) 出会いカフェ
出逢空間出逢空間 (http://deaiku.com/) 出逢空間
人妻人妻 (http://www.hitozumaz.com/) 人妻
人妻人妻 (http://xn--gmq11y.souplannd.com/) 人妻
風俗風俗 (http://fuuzoku01.com/) 風俗
風俗風俗 (http://fuuzoku01.com/) 風俗
風俗求人風俗求人 (http://www.denzatu.com/omizu/) 風俗求人
風俗求人風俗求人 (http://www.fuuzokuz.com/) 風俗求人
風俗風俗 (http://fuzokuden.com/) 風俗
デリヘルデリヘル (http://deriheru01.com/) デリヘル
ソープランドソープランド (http://www.souplannd.com/) ソープランド
デリバリーヘルスナビデリバリーヘルスナビ (http://www.denzatu.com/denzatunewshop/) デリバリーヘルスナビ
キャッシングキャッシング (http://cashing01.com/) キャッシング
キャッシング一覧キャッシング一覧 (http://cashing02.com/) キャッシング一覧
キャッシング比較キャッシング比較 (http://cashinghikaku01.com/) キャッシング比較
キャッシングローンキャッシングローン (http://cashiingrron.com/) キャッシングローン
キャッシングキャッシング (http://www.prisonerappreciationsociety.com/) キャッシング

wmania2

26-05-2009, 09:50 PM

Diego is officially a Juventus player

The news is now official: Diego Ribas da Cunha is a Juventus player. The talented Brazilian signed a five year contract which will see him at Juventus until the 30th of June 2014.

The midfielder who was in Turin yesterday for the medical tests and the signing of the contract returned to Germany where on Saturday the 30th of May he will be playing for Werder Bremen in the final of the German Cup against Bayer Leverkusen. Before returning to Bremen he stated: «I am very enthusiastic and proud of signing for Juventus, such a prestigious club which I dreamt of since I was a child. After the experience in Portugal and the Bundesliga I will be able to test myself in a championship of very high level and I am sure that with Juventus I will be able to reach great goals. Now, however, I want to concentrate on Saturday’s final: I really want to leave the supporters of Werder in the best of manners because it is also thanks to them that I improved in the last years up to the extent of deserving this new opportunity».

Juventus will pay Werder Bremen €24.5 million divided into three installments in bank guarantees: €14 million on the 1st of July 2009, €5.5 million on the 1st of July 2010, €5 million on the 1st of July 2011. The price can rise by a further €2.5 million in case of the fulfillment of established sports objectives in the next five years.

«Due to his technical characteristics – declared Juventus general manager Jean-Claude Blanc – Diego is a fundamental player for the strengthening of the squad. We always said that our objective is to bring together youngsters and champions and Diego falls into both categories: notwithstanding he is only 24 years old, he is a player of great experience with more then 7 years of professional football at high levels. I am sure that his contribution will be important to continue helping the improvement of Juventus and to make a further step ahead in view of the next objectives».

«By depositing this contract – added sports director Alessio Secco – we have brought to a definite conclusion an agreement on which we have been working for months. Diego is a unique player and to bring him to Juventus we had to compete with some of the major European teams. His addition to the squad increases the team’s potential and allows the experimentation of new formations. His performances in the last seasons and his personality which distinguished him in German and in Europe are a confirmation of his qualities. He will be another weapon with which to face the next Champions League, for which we qualified mathematically last Sunday».

Diego Ribas da Cunha was born in Ribeirão Preto, On the 28th of February 1985.

The attacking midfielder with a compact and fast physique has excellent technique and vision of play. He is a complete player who is good at dribbling, sudden changes of pace and creating numerical superiority. He is very precise with long balls, has a powerful shot and is particularly skilled at taking free-kicks, capabilities which make him a great finisher.

After having made his debut with Santos in 2002 at 16 years of age he was transferred to Porto after two years during which he won 2 championships. At Porto he spent 2 seasons winning the Intercontinental Cup, a championship and a Portuguese Supercup before being transferred to Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga. In Germany Diego’s career exploded winning a League Cup and being named best player of the championship in 2007.

In the meantime he has been winning himself more and more space in the Brazilian national team with which side he won two Coppa America (in 2004 and 2007) and a bronze medal at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

Season 2008-09

Championship : 20 appearances – 12 goals
European Cups: 8 appearances – 6 goals
German Cup : 4 appearances – 2 goals

Jusstatic

27-05-2009, 11:28 AM

Great news. Part 1 of the Transfer mission complete. Now we should go for quality fullbacks and another Centreback as Cannavaro is a short term solution. Legro and Mellberg are not Chiellini's able deputy.

Cissiboy

27-05-2009, 11:37 AM

Ok now i can eventually say that

DIEGO IS A CRACK !!

I love him and I hope he will be able to make us fly higher and higher. I'm a bit concerned by his moody character but he is 24...I can wait a couple of years for him to be constantly at his best

Great job !

dreamer75

10-06-2009, 05:02 PM

Sorry for the lack of updates, guys :)

dreamer75

10-06-2009, 05:03 PM

LonelyMan

10-06-2009, 07:39 PM

Good for you, as a Milan fan :)

Jusstatic

11-06-2009, 05:22 PM

With the capture of Diego, let us hope that this summer will get even better.

The club's new stadium is proceeding as plan, we are not selling any star players, potentially we might see a new formation: 4-3-1-2 or 4-2-3-1 and the club is working hard to bring in D'Agostino, Grosso, Tasci, etc.. :s12:

Cissiboy

11-06-2009, 05:28 PM

Milan without Kaka and Inter without Maicon and (probably) Ibra things are getting better for us...

dreamer75

13-06-2009, 09:10 PM

Players IN:

- Fabio Cannavaro D C 1973 Real Madrid 0m €
- Diego Ribas da Cunha AM C 1985 Werder Bremen 24.5 m €(+2.5 bonuses)

TOTAL: 24.5m €

dreamer75

13-06-2009, 09:10 PM

Fabio Cannavaro

http://media-2.web.britannica.com/eb-media/98/98198-004-FF8C2C11.jpg

Date of birth: September 13, 1973 (1973-09-13) (age 35)
Place of birth: Naples, Italy
Height: 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight: 75 kg
Playing position: Centre back
Number: 29
Fee: 0m €
Contract: 2010 + options

Youth career
Napoli

Senior career
Years Club App (Gls)
1992–1995 Napoli 58 0(1)
1995–2002 Parma 212 0(5)
2002–2004 Internazionale 50 0(2)
2004–2006 Juventus 74 0(6)
2006–2009 Real Madrid 97 0(1)
2009-..........Juventus

National team
1993–1996 Italy U-21 21 0(0)
1997– Italy 124 0(2)

Fabio Cannavaro, Cavaliere Ufficiale OMRI[1][2] (born September 13, 1973 in Naples, Italy) is an Italian World Cup-winning footballer. Currently he is the captain of the Italian national football team and plays at club level for Real Madrid.

During his career Cannavaro has earned world wide prominence, winning many personal accolades. For example he was the first ever defender to win FIFA World Player of the Year. He was also selected in the FIFPro World XI squad twice, during 2005–06 and 2006–07.[3]

Before moving to Real Madrid in Spain, Cannavaro played most of his club career in the Italian Serie A league. The clubs he played for includes his hometown side Napoli, Parma, with whom he achieved significant domestic cup and European success, Juventus, where he won two later revoked scudetto titles, and Internazionale.

Biography

Cannavaro was born in Naples to Gelsomina and Pasquale Cannavaro. His mother worked as a maid, while his father was a bank clerk; his father also played football for provincial side Giugliano.[4] As a youngster Cannavaro played for a team from Bagnoli before being quickly spotted by the scouts of Napoli, his childhood team. He is well known for his fierce defending and interception.

Club career

Cannavaro initially served as the club's ballboy, and his progress as a player was such that he became a member of the first team alongside some of his childhood idols. Cannavaro's debut in Serie A came on 7 March 1993 in Turin for a game against Juventus. The post-Maradona Napoli were in desperate need of funds and were soon forced to sell Cannavaro to Parma, where Cannavaro won the UEFA Cup and Coppa Italia, and was named the Serie A Defender of the Year.

In the summer of 2001, Cannavaro joined Internazionale for a fee of €23 million. During his spell with the club he reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League 2002-03 and also finished runners up in Serie A. His second season was not as productive and he missed a large chunk of it through injury.

After a two-year stint, he signed for Juventus on summer transfer window deadline day. The deal also involved the exchange of Fabian Carini who left for Inter and an additional €10 million. By coming to Turin, he re-joined his ex-Parma teammates Lilian Thuram and Gianluigi Buffon, and together the threesome formed one of the most feared defences in the Serie A. They went on won two consecutive Scudetti in 2005 and 2006, though both were later revoked due to the Calciopoli scandal. Juventus captain Cannavaro won l'Oscar del Calcio: Migliore difensore, the Football Oscar, for his exceptional debut season at the Turin giants.

After the 2006 World Cup, the Calciopoli trial verdicts relegated Juventus to Serie B and stripped the club of its 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 Scudetti. Since Juventus was ineligible to qualify for the UEFA Champions League, Cannavaro decided to leave. "Even if I know this may be hard to believe, I would have stayed at Juventus had they remained in Serie A – even with a 30-point deduction.".

He rejoined coach Fabio Capello at Real Madrid and inherited the number 5 shirt of the legendary Zinédine Zidane. Although no fee was confirmed by either club, press speculation has often set the combined transfer's worth at roughly 20 million euros. On July 25, he officially signed a three-year contract. He scored his first goal for the club on August 18, 2006 in a friendly against Real Betis. He won the '06-07 La Liga title with Madrid, and was named the 2006 FIFA World Player of the Year.[3] Fabio Cannavaro is the first and so far only defender to win the award (Paolo Maldini came in second place in 1995), as well as the oldest recipient. Fabio Cannavaro is reportedly ready to leave Real Madrid at the end of his contract(at the end of 2008-09 season) and has been linked to former club Napoli, Tottenham, Milan, Bayern Munich and Manchester City and recently with Juventus, club that the italian press has announced as the "winner", even if it isn't any contract signed. The rumour is that Juventus has offered Cannavaro a 4-year contract, that will see him play 1 year, with his option to play longer. When he retires, likely after the world cup, he would serve the remainder of the contract as a member of the board of directors for the team.

International career

Cannavaro's first taste of international success came over a decade ago under coach Cesare Maldini with Italy's U-21 side, winning consecutive European Under-21 Football Championship titles in 1994 and 1996. In 1996, he participated in the Summer Olympics in Atlanta. He played for his country in the 1998, 2002, and 2006 World Cups, as well as Euro 2000 and Euro 2004. Cannavaro made his international debut in January 1997 against Northern Ireland and has since earned 124 caps. Only fellow defender Paolo Maldini (126 caps) has appeared in more games for Italy.

Cannavaro's first international tournament came at 1998 FIFA World Cup under the mentorship of veteran defender Paolo Maldini, and the squad was coached by Maldini's father Cesare. Italy went out in the quarter-finals to hosts and eventual champions France; Cannavaro suffered a cut on his forehead from an elbow by Stéphane Guivarc'h during the match. The match was decided by a penalty shoot-out after the teams were tied 0-0.

In Euro 2000, it was Les Bleus who once again shattered Italy's dreams. Cannavaro had a strong tournament and the Azzurri reached the final, where they led the then world champions 1-0 going into injury time. Near the end of regular time, Sylvain Wiltord found the equalizer, and an extra-time golden goal from David Trézéguet gave France the title.

At the 2002 FIFA World Cup he was credited with holding the defence together, almost single-handedly after Alessandro Nesta was injured against Croatia. Italy however went out in the second round, losing to co-hosts and eventual semi-finalists South Korea, again to a golden goal.

Cannavaro had a hard act to follow when he took over as captain from Maldini after the 2002 World Cup, but he quickly won the team over with his constant smile, laid-back Neapolitan approach and inspiring performances. After Maldini's international retirement he first captained Italy in a match at Napoli and received a standing ovation on the pitch where he sported the local side's colours between 1991 and 1995.

Cannavaro's first international goal was scored on 30 May 2004 against Tunisia, Italy won 4-0. Euro 2004, which was hosted by Portugal, turned out to be a disappointment. Cannavaro picked up yellow cards during the two draws with Denmark (0-0) and Sweden (1-1), forcing him to sit out the final group game. Italy defeated Bulgaria 2-1, but failed to advance on goal difference.

2006 World Cup

Cannavaro captained Italy throughout their 2006 World Cup campaign. One of his key performances came against Germany in the World Cup Semi-Finals 2006. His crowning moment was lifting the World Cup on July 9, 2006, the night of his 100th cap. Cannavaro did not receive a single yellow or red card during the 690 minutes he played in the tournament.

Along with Buffon, Cannavaro played every minute of every match in the tournament for Italy. The Italian defence conceded only two goals throughout the entire tournament, an own-goal against the United States and a Zidane penalty in the final against France.

With the injury of defensive partner Alessandro Nesta Cannavaro somehow managed to hold the defense together, earning him a spot on the All-Star Team at the end of the competition - awarded by FIFA's Technical Study Group - alongside six other Italian teammates, Gianluigi Buffon, Gennaro Gattuso, Andrea Pirlo, Luca Toni, Francesco Totti and Gianluca Zambrotta. He was runner-up in the race for the Golden Ball, finishing behind French counterpart Zinédine Zidane; it was a close contest with Zidane polling 2012 points to Cannavaro's 1977.

Euro 2008

On June 2, 2008, Fabio Cannavaro was injured during Italy's first training session for Euro 2008. Cannavaro sustained the knock following a tackle by fellow defender Giorgio Chiellini and was carried off the field on a stretcher. Italy doctor Paolo Zeppilli said: "We have to do tests but it does not look like a minor injury". Test had shown that he tore ligaments in his left ankle. Right after the examinations, Italian journalists awaited Cannavaro, who told them: "I'm going home", with a melancholic smile on his face. After the day was over, Roberto Donadoni called up Fiorentina centre-back Alessandro Gamberini as his official replacement. Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon captained the team in his place. Cannavaro added he will stay with the squad to offer support. This would have been Cannavaro's third Euro tournament.

Cannavaro has also put his plans to retire from the national team after Euro 2008 on hold and added that it has made him more determined to captain Italy through the 2010 World Cup.

Personal

Fabio is married to Daniela Arenoso, and together they have 3 children, Christian, Martina and Andrea. His younger brother, Paolo Cannavaro, is also a defender, and plays for Napoli. The two brothers were first spotted by an English scout when Fabio was only twelve. Michael Hutchinson (who was working for Newcastle United at the time) decided to personally train them as central defenders, having sixteen years of experience as a professional central defender himself. The two brothers played alongside each other at Parma from 2000 until 2002, when Fabio left for Inter. His mother, Gelsomina, worked as a maid and his father, Pasquale, was a bank clerk. Although they are no longer playing together, Fabio has expressed interest in ending his career with Paolo in a Napoli shirt.

With his fellow Napoletano Ciro Ferrara, Cannavaro has helped establish a charity foundation, Fondazione Cannavaro Ferrara, specialising in the procurement of cancer research equipment and surgery for special cases of cancer for a hospital in their native Naples.

Fabio has also stated in a 2007 issue of League Magazine, when asked about women he has said that he has a fondness towards Asian women, that especially of Indian women and women from China. Saying "the most beautiful of women lie in Asia, that in India and China, they are truly walking goddesses". He is still fully committed to Daniela for many years.

dreamer75

13-06-2009, 09:11 PM

Diego Ribas da Cunha

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/Diego_ribas.jpg

Date of birth: 28 February 1985 (1985-02-28) (age 24)
Place of birth: Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
Height: 1.74 m (5 ft 8+1⁄2 in)
Weight: 76 kg
Playing position: Attacking midfielder
Number: tba
Fee: 24.5m € + 2.5m € bonuses
Contract: 2014

Youth career
1996–2001 Santos

Senior career
Years Club App (Gls)2
2001–2004 Santos 64 (21)
2004–2006 FC Porto 48 0(4)
2006–2009 Werder Bremen 81 (36)
2009-..........Juventus

National team
2003– Brazil 28 0(2)

Biography

Born in Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, he was signed by the São Paulo team Santos FC at the age of 12. Diego developed in the Santos youth system, making his first team debut at the age of 16 in the Rio-São Paulo Championship in 2002 and in the same year he won the domestic Campeonato Brasileiro championship.

Club career

Werder Bremen

2006–2007 season

In May 2006, Diego signed a contract with Werder Bremen until 2010 for a transfer fee of €6 million.

His first match for Werder Bremen came in the Premiere Ligapokal (Premiere League Cup). Werder Bremen won the cup beating Bayern Munich in the final on 5 August.

The 2006–07 Bundesliga season began well for Diego. He scored the first goal and set up two more for Bremen in their 4-2 win over Hannover 96, on 13 August. In his second match in the Bundesliga he set up both goals in the 2-1 win over Bayer Leverkusen.

Thanks to his good performances in August, both in the Bundesliga and in the Premiere Ligapokal, he won the August Player of the Month award. As the Bundesliga season went on, Diego made several amazing performances and became one of the most valuable players for Werder Bremen, along with his team-mate Torsten Frings. They are called the "two motors of Bremen's midfield". In October 2006, he won a second Player of the Month award and again in December 2006. He was then named as the Best Player of the first half of the Bundesliga.

Werder Bremen finished in third place in Group A in the Champions League group stages, and they moved to the UEFA Cup, where they reached the Semi-finals, beating AZ Alkmaar in the Quarter finals, due in part to Diego's creative play.

On 15 April, Diego again played well, scoring in the 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund. Five days later, on 20 April Bremen played against Alemannia Aachen. Although Diego's performance was good he did not score until stoppage time when he scored a goal from 62.5 metres, which later was elected as goal of the year. Bremen won the game 3-1 and topped the table with 60 points.

Following his good performances in the first half of the Bundesliga, Diego got called up to the Brazilian national football team in November.

After the 2006–07 season ended Diego won the Bundesliga Player of the Season award organised by popular magazine Kicker.[3] He got just over 50 percent of the votes. Unfortunately, his team did not win the Bundesliga after finishing 3rd in the table, behind champions VfB Stuttgart and Schalke 04.

2007–2008 season

Diego started his season well, scoring a penalty on the first matchday. Diego gave many outstanding performances. He was crucial as Werder Bremen got through to the Champions League's group phase. They beat Dinamo Zagreb 3-2 at Zagreb, with Diego scoring two penalties.
Diego with the Brazilian national team.

On the first Champions League Group Stage matchday, they lost 2-1 to Real Madrid, but Diego's performance aroused interest in Real Madrid's coach Bernd Schuster. But the stories were put to an end when Diego signed a new contract which will last until 2011.

After the loss to Real Madrid, Werder Bremen faced VfB Stuttgart, the defending German champions, at home. Werder won 4-1, with Diego leading the midfield. Later on in the season, Werder Bremen got a historical 8-1 win over Arminia Bielefeld, with Diego assisting three goals and scoring one himself.

Diego was voted Player of the Month in September.

International career

Diego was called up for the Brazil national squad for the Copa América 2004 tournament, and he was instrumental in securing the tournament victory for Brazil when he scored in the penalty shootout against Argentina in the final. He and Robinho were known as a famous duo when they played for Santos.

He was transferred to Portuguese club FC Porto in July 2004. Diego did not maintain a stable place in the Porto team under coach Co Adriaanse. And because of that, Diego was left out of the Brazil squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup tournament. He was though a substitute in a friendly match against England on 1 June 2007, and scored a last minute equaliser.

Honours

Santos

* Campeonato Brasileiro: 2

2002

Porto

* Portuguese Supercup: 1

2004

* Intercontinental Cup: 1

2004

* Portuguese Liga: 1

2006

Werder Bremen

* German League Cup: 1

2006

International

* Salerno Mundialito: 1

2000

* South American Under 17 Championship: 1

2001

* Toulon Tournament: 1

2002

* Copa América: 2

2004, 2007

* Olympic Bronze Medalist: 1

2008

dreamer75

13-06-2009, 09:18 PM

dreamer75

13-06-2009, 09:35 PM

River Plate has announced they will visit Canada for three weeks of pre-season training this summer, where they will participate in friendly matches against Italy’s Juventus and Major League Soccer’s, Toronto F.C.

According to La Página Millonaria, los millonarios will be in Canada from July 19th to August 9th as part of their preparation for the upcoming Apertura and Copa Sudamericana campaigns, and will include two friendlies with Juventus on August 5th and 8th, in a soon to be announced venue. The game will be a rematch of sorts of the 1996 Intercontinental Cup, which River lost 1-0 to Juve in Tokyo, with a squad that included such stars as Juan Pablo Sorín, Hernán Díaz, Ariel Ortega, and of course, Enzo Francescoli.

05/08 - Toronto TOURNÉE IN CANADA ?
River Plate-Juventus (1) -
08/08 - Edmonton TOURNÉE IN CANADA ?
River Plate-Juventus (2) -
- 20.30 Torino ? TROFEO TIM
Juventus - Milan - Inter Mediaset
agosto 20.30 Napoli ? TROFEO BIRRA MORETTI Mediaset
agosto 20.45 Milano TROFEO BERLUSCONI
Milan-Juventus Sky
agosto 18.00 ? Villar Perosa Juventus-Juve Primavera -
22-23

dreamer75

01-07-2009, 08:36 PM

According to BBC's website were going to play a friendly with non league side West Auckland from Durham on August the 1st.

Durham minnows will play Juventus

Durham non-League club West Auckland Town are to play Italian side Juventus in a friendly in Turin on 1 August.

The trip marks the 100-year anniversary of the club's 6-1 defeat of Juve to win the Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy, which was later dubbed 'the first World Cup.'

A £10,000 donation from the Football Association has enabled the Northern League outfit to make the journey.

"We are delighted to support West Auckland FC's return to Turin," said FA chairman Lord Triesman.

"It's so important they are able to celebrate the 100th anniversary of their famous match with Juventus.

"This is a wonderful story and it's only right that they will be in Italy to commemorate the remarkable achievement of winning the Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy."

The trophy is widely seen as the forerunner to the Jules Rimet Trophy, which was won by England in 1966.

West Auckland, then a team mainly made up of coal miners, defeated German side Stuttgart in the inaugural competition in 1907 before beating Winterthur of Switzerland 2-0 in the final.

Two years later, they retained the trophy - which became theirs to keep - by beating Zurich in the opening match and then trouncing Juventus.

source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/8127787.stm

dreamer75

01-07-2009, 08:44 PM

Goal.com Profile: Ciro Ferrara
Goal.com’s Adrian Del Monte looks at the life of the new coach of Juventus, who will be keen to take his former club back to the top, as he prepares for his first coaching adventure next season.
1 Jul 2009 11:30:27
Photo Gallery
Zoom
Photo Gallery
Zoom
Serie A : Ciro Ferrara (Juventus)
Related Links
Teams
Juventus
Players
Ciro Ferrara
Personal Details:

Name: Ciro Ferrara

Date Of Birth: February 11, 1967 (age 42)

Place Of Birth: Naples, Italy

Playing Position: Centre-Back

Clubs: Napoli (1985-1994), Juventus (1994-2005)

International: Italy (1987-2000)

Coaching: Juventus (2009-?)

The Underrated Talent

Ciro Ferrara will always be remembered as one of the most underrated defenders in the history of the Italian game. For a man who made 272 appearances for Napoli from 1985-1994, and then 307 for Juventus from 1994-2005, Ferrara never had the opportunity to fully prove himself on the international stage.

As a native of Naples, he made his debut for the Partenopei at the tender age of just 18, in a match against Juve that ended 0-0 in May 1985. After managing to hold down a spot in the first team soon after that, Ferrara became an integral part of the squad that would go on to win two Scudetti in 1986/87 and 1989/90.

He earned his first international cap for the Azzurri in June 1987, however his career at the highest level was always going to be a difficult one, with the likes of Franco Baresi, Riccardo Ferri, Pietro Vierchowod, Giuseppe Bergomi, Alessandro Costacurta, Paolo Maldini, Fabio Cannavaro and Alessandro Nesta all around at some stage throughout his career.

After failing to play a game at Euro 1988, he made his first appearance for the national team at a major tournament at the 1990 World Cup, when he took part in the third place match against England, which Italy won 2-1. Following that and the appointment of Arrigo Sacchi, the promising defender was not taken into consideration, which led to him being snubbed for the 1994 World Cup.

In the summer of 94, he opted to follow his club coach, close friend and mentor Marcello Lippi to Turin, and it wouldn’t take him long to become an immediate success with the Bianconeri. After being handed the captaincy soon after joining the club, Ferrara would go on to win three Scudetti in his first four seasons.

He consequently was given a number of opportunities with the national team, and after being called up by Sacchi regularly for the Euro '96 qualifiers, he unfortunately was ruled out of the tournament because of injury. At the age 29 his international future was at the crossroads, however to his credit he fought back well, and performed consistently in the lead up to the 1998 World Cup. Incredibly he succumbed to yet another injury, which saw him miss another major competition.

Ferrara was included in the Italian squad for Euro 2000, and after making one appearance against Sweden in the group stage; his international career was officially over. From this point, his performances and consistency slowly began to drop, and he decided to hang up his boots with Juventus following the 2004/05 season.

Emergency Call

Since the completion of his playing days, Ferrara joined Lippi as part of the technical staff of the national team. Despite not playing, he was a deserved member of Italy’s successful World Cup winning group of 2006, as he was in charge of a defence that conceded just two goals in seven games - those being a freak own goal and a disputed penalty.

Following the triumph though, Lippi resigned, which meant that Ferrara was yet again out of a job. It was at this point that he rejoined Juventus as the director of the club’s youth program, before crossing back to the Azzurri in 2008 to reunite with Lippi as an assistant coach, following Italy’s failure to perform at the Euros.

On May 18, 2009, Ferrara was appointed as the interim coach of the Bianconeri, following the sacking of Claudio Ranieri. With just two rounds remaining, he made no mistake by leading his side to convincing victories over both Siena (3-0) and Lazio (2-0) respectively.

It’s Official

At the conclusion of the 2008/09 Serie A season, a number of experienced heads were being linked with the top job at Juventus. These included Luciano Spalletti and Antonio Conte, both of whom seem destined to move to a top Italian club at some stage in the future. On June 5 at 19:00 CET though, Juventus formally announced the appointment of Ciro Ferrara as the permanent head coach for the 2009/10 and 2010/11 seasons.

The Old Lady were thrilled with their decision to employ the inexperienced, yet extremely knowledgeable former star of the club. The general manager Jean-Claude Blanc, who spoke about his appointment following the announcement, echoed these thoughts in an interview:

“We met with various candidates, and then we made our decision. The decision was based on Ciro's qualities, from his character, availability and his heart, he was the right man for the job,” Blanc said.

The 42-year-old coach will do all he can to ensure that the club return to their glories of previous years, which sees them with the most Scudetti to their name after 77 seasons of Italian football. With Fabio Cannavaro returning from Real Madrid, Diego signed from Werder Bremen and Udinese’s Gaetano D’Agostino seemingly on his way, the future is bright for Ferrara and for Juventus.

Did You Know?

- Ferrara lived next door to Diego Maradona during his time at Napoli.

- He is renowned for having an excellent singing voice. This can be heard on the Juventus squad's recording of Lucio Battisti’s classic 'Il Mio Canto Libero'.

Honours:

- Italian Scudetti (7): 1986/7, 1989/90, 1994/95, 1996/97, 1997/98, 2001/02, 2002/03
- Italian Super Cups (5): 1990, 1995, 1997, 2002, 2003
- Coppa Italia (2): 1986/87, 1994/95
- Champions League (1): 1996
- European Super Cup (1): 1996
- Intercontinental Cup (1): 1996
- UEFA Cup (1): 1988/89
- Intertoto Cup (1): 1999

Adrian Del Monte, Goal.com

dreamer75

01-07-2009, 08:46 PM

The Juventus chief has revealed that Nedved would be welcome to return, but in a technical role...
1 Jul 2009 12:40:31
Photo Gallery
Zoom
Photo Gallery
Zoom
Juve's Pavel Nedved celebrates his side's Champions League win over Real Madrid
Related Links
Teams
Juventus
Players
Pavel Nedved
Juventus president Giovanni Cobolli Gigli has revealed that he would like Pavel Nedved to stay at the club with a director's role after the Czech midfield ace left Turin at the end of last term.

Nedved was set to retire from football altogether after leaving Juventus, but his agent Mino Raiola claimed his activities on the pitch were not over just yet. The midfielder has been linked with a return to Lazio who have admitted they would welcome him back.

However, Gigli is desperate to hold on to the Czech star and he has offered him a role behind the scenes.

"I hope Nedved becomes a part of Juventus' technical family," the president told Tuttosport during a charity event held in Turin.

"When the league finished Nedved said he would be hanging up his boots, but his agent is very convincing. If he returns to Juventus then we would be delighted to have him on the technical team.

"I don't think he would be able to play for us again as he told us he didn't feel he had the right condition to play for a big club at the highest levels."

Xabi Alonso has been linked to the club as their search for a midfielder continues, but Gigli has ruled out that move.

"We have names for the midfield, but Alonso is not one of them," said the chief.

"I have heard this through the papers. Alonso is a great player, but it's just paper talk.

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

dreamer75

01-07-2009, 08:50 PM

Canna plugs Diarra Wednesday 1 July, 2009

Fabio Cannavaro has recommended Juventus sign Mahamadou Diarra, but admits he isn't in charge of transfer strategy.

The 35-year-old Italy captain, who rejoined the Bianconeri this summer after three years with Real Madrid, knows the club are looking for a holding midfielder.

“Diarra is a friend, but I don't do the market, the club do,” Cannavaro told Sky Italia.

He then spoke about Napoli, his hometown team, who rejected the chance to sign him this summer.

“At 35 they considered me old. It wasn't a question of economics. It would have been a free transfer.”

Finally, Cannavaro turned his attention to the Confederations Cup.

Cannavaro had a shocker as Italy were knocked out in the group stages.

“The Confederations Cup made us understand that playing at altitude is difficult.

“We need to plan things better. We have a year to prepare ourselves,” Cannavaro concluded.

Jusstatic

04-07-2009, 10:03 AM

It would be great if we can see a lineup similar to this next season:

Buffon

Zebina Cannavaro Chiellini Grosso

D'Agostino

Sissoko Marchisio

Diego

Amauri Giovinco

:s12:

dreamer75

04-07-2009, 05:02 PM

It would be great if we can see a lineup similar to this next season:

Buffon

Zebina Cannavaro Chiellini Grosso

D'Agostino

Sissoko Marchisio

Diego

Amauri Giovinco

:s12:

Buffon
Zuniga Cannavaro Chiellini Criscito
D'Agostino Sissoko Marchisio
Diego
Amauri Del Piero (C)

wmania2

04-07-2009, 08:10 PM

Buffon
Grygera Cannavaro Chiellini ??
Poulsen/D'Ago
Sissoko Tiago/Marchisio
Diego
Trezeguet Del Piero

Jusstatic

06-07-2009, 01:43 PM

Juventus Have Taken Me For A Ride & D'Agostino Is Not For Sale - Pozzo
The Udinese president has hit out at Juventus as the D'Agostino transfer saga grinds to a halt...
5 Jul 2009 17:03:01
Photo GalleryZoom
Pozzo - Udinese (www.udinese.it)
Related Links
Teams
Juventus
Udinese
Players
Gaetano D'Agostino
Any hope Juventus had of rescuing stalled negotiations with Udinese for Gaetano D'Agostino have been dashed after president Giampaolo Pozzo underlined his stance once and for all.

The Turin-based side did not manage to reach an agreement with the Friulani over the midfielder, despite talks rumbling on for over a month. It now appears any potential transfer is dead.

"Juventus have taken me for a canvasser," snarled Pozzo, angrily.

"They tried to force the situation by using the player's will and I am annoyed that they have illusioned the player," Pozzo revealed to Il Messagero Veneto.

"Enough is enough now. Pre-season is upon us and D'Agostino has to think about Udinese.

"It will be difficult, but it will also be a challenge to show those who didn't want him how much he is worth."

D'Agostino had been hoping to engineer a move to the Old Lady, but it now seems as if he will be staying in Udine.

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

Haiz... A failed attempt. I really feel that D'Agostino whom eventhough might not be a good as eg. Alonso, Pirlo, really fits into our tactical system for the coming season. I wonder with whom now will the rare slow and inefficient Juve management bring in.... I hope it wil not be Ledesma (a good bench player) or Diarra (a ball-winner, workhorse).

Jusstatic

06-07-2009, 01:46 PM

Buffon
Zuniga Cannavaro Chiellini Criscito
D'Agostino Sissoko Marchisio
Diego
Amauri Del Piero (C)

Zuniga.. nice :)

I hope they use more of Giovinco. He is pure talent, and at the age of 22, he is "ripe" for first team action. :s31:

wmania2

08-07-2009, 06:30 AM

It was announced in the papers that we have signed Felipe Melo.

dreamer75

08-07-2009, 09:50 PM

It was announced in the papers that we have signed Felipe Melo.

Juve: Melo not official... yet Wednesday 8 July, 2009

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Juventus President Giovanni Cobolli Gigli claims Felipe Melo’s signing “is not official yet,” but it is just a matter of red tape.

The two clubs reportedly reached an agreement late last night worth around £21m, including winger Marco Marchionni as part of the exchange.

“He is not our player yet,” explained the Bianconeri patron. “There have been and there are some negotiations, but the official completion of the operation is still missing.

“When it is all official, you will be told.”

It’s believed Juventus are waiting for the close of the financial markets this evening, as the club is floated on the stock market and does not wish to spike its share price.

Arsenal were thought to be the favourites for the Brazilian midfielder, but Juve staged a sensational swoop.

“The matter has not yet been concluded, but I hope it will be soon,” added Cobolli Gigli.

“Marchionni to Fiorentina? The details will emerge later on.”

Viola fans are furious to see one of their star players sold to their biggest rivals, as graffiti has appeared around the city declaring: ‘Melo to Juve = No season tickets

Channel 4

dreamer75

08-07-2009, 09:53 PM

http://edicola.tuttosport.com/newsmem/tuttosport/20090705/ttsnaztut050709105a.pdf.0/img/Image_2.jpg

dreamer75

08-07-2009, 09:54 PM

Felipe Melo

http://www.champions365.com/images/img/user/1168.jpg

Date of birth: June 26, 1983 (1983-06-26) (age 26)
Place of birth: Volta Redonda, Brazil
Height: 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Weight: 78 kg
Playing position: Defensive midfielder
Number: tba
Fee: tba
Contract: tba

Senior career
Years Club Apps (Gls)
2001–2003 Flamengo
2003 Cruzeiro 29 0(1)
2004 Grêmio 19 0(3)
2005 Mallorca 8 0(0)
2005–2007 Racing de Santander 48 0(6)
2007–2008 Almería 34 0(7)
2008–2009 Fiorentina 29 0(2)
2009-........Juventus

National team
2009– Brazil 10 0(2)

Felipe Melo de Carvalho (born 26 June 1983 in Volta Redonda) is a Brazilian footballer, who currently plays as a defensive midfielder for Juventus.

Club career

Melo began his career in Flamengo, Cruzeiro and Grêmio in his native Brazil. Melo moved to Spain, joining Real Mallorca at the end of the 2004–05 season. Afterwards, he joined Racing Santander, where he spent two seasons, before moving on to Almería. After a successful first season at Almería, Melo agreed to transfer to Italian side Fiorentina in a €13 million transfer for the 2008–09 season. This was confirmed after Almería's match against Recreativo in La Liga. He made his debut in the first leg of the third qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League against Slavia Prague, and scored his first goal in a viola shirt against Atalanta in the Serie A.

On 30 June 2009 he signed a new 5-year contract with Viola.

International career

Melo made his debut for Brazil on 10 February 2009 against Italy in a friendly match, which Brazil won 2–0. He scored his first goal in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification over Peru. Brazil won 3–0. At the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, Melo scored the opening goal in a 3–0 victory over United States. Melo started all five games at the competition as Brazil went on to win the trophy.

Honours

Flamengo

* Campeonato Carioca (Rio de Janeiro State League): 2001
* Copa dos Campeões (Brazilian Champions Cup): 2001

Cruzeiro

* Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (Brazilian League): 2003
* Copa do Brasil (Brazilian Cup): 2003
* Campeonato Mineiro (Minas Gerais State League): 2003

International

* FIFA Confederations Cup: 2009

dreamer75

08-07-2009, 09:57 PM

http://www.channel4.com/sport/football_italia/topten/fantasisti.jpg

10. Roberto Mancini
Mancio made his Serie A debut aged 16 with Bologna, netting nine in his first season. His class and talent brought him to Sampdoria where, alongside his ‘twin brother’ Gianluca Vialli, he won the Scudetto but lost a Champions League Final to Barcelona. The highlight of his career is perhaps that astonishing back-heel goal which he scored for Lazio against Parma.

9. Giancarlo Antognoni
Known as ‘the boy who plays football looking at the stars’, Antognoni is regarded as the only true ‘bandiera’ at Fiorentina. The Viola ace though had a different style compared to the traditional image of a fantastista, since he was a much stronger type of player but, nevertheless, was equally gifted with both feet.

8. Gianfranco Zola
‘Nemo propheta in patria’ – there isn’t a better proverb to describe Zola’s career and his achievements. Neglected in Italy, the small Sardinian made a name for himself in England where his goals are still remembered. Sir Zola learned the art of the job from his majesty Diego Maradona in person before making headlines at Chelsea.

7. Francesco Totti
‘Er Pupone’ has deservedly been tipped as the eighth king of Rome. No-look passes and unexpected touches are all part of his portfolio, including a penalty against Holland at Euro 2000 when he chipped Edwin Van der Sar. Always loyal to the Giallorossi colours, the Roman born and bred maybe missed plenty of silverware by staying in the Capital but he kept his fans happy.

6. Sandro Mazzola
The son of Valentino Mazzola honoured his father with a fantastic career culminating with Inter’s last European Cup triumph. They called him ‘baffo’ due to his moustache, which betrayed his young age. Sandro was perhaps one of the most complete No 10’s in the game but unluckily lost the Ballon d’Or to Johann Cruyff.

5. Alessandro Del Piero
‘Pinturicchio’ is, alongside Totti, amongst the best Italian players in the last decade. But in comparison to his Roma rival he has won many more trophies and gained higher international recognition. Kept his honour when he led Juventus back to Serie A after a year in the Cadetti and is by far the Bianconeri’s most loved player.

4. Giuseppe Meazza
If you consider this man has got one of the most illustrious stadiums in the world named after him then you realise his achievements were seriously big. Meazza scored goals galore for Inter but also featured for Milan and Juventus. Won two World Cups with Italy and left an indelible mark in the history of calcio.

3. Gianni Rivera
Elegant like no other, the ‘Golden Boy’ of Italian football is in the Top 20 Players of all time chart published by the IFFHS. His duel with Mazzola Jnr proved he was the most talented of the two and also the most revolutionary. The Milan maestro’s cheeky smile broke thousands of hearts around the peninsula.

2. Valentino Mazzola
Prototype of the ‘total player’, he opened the way to a generation of champions but tragically died in the Superga air disaster. Mazzola was so clever and experienced that he could have played superbly anywhere on the pitch but what he did best was scoring and creating openings for his teammates. The Granata legend was indeed a truly devoted fantasista.

1. Roberto Baggio
‘Il Divin Codino’ is one of those players you just can’t avoid falling in love with. Truly divine, Roby did everything superbly from creating to finishing. Made magic with each team he played for but also brought controversy everywhere he went. Teammates and Coaches hated to be overshadowed by the former Juve star, who is undoubtedly one of the brightest in the Italian firmament.

Words: Serafino Ingardia

dreamer75

08-07-2009, 10:00 PM

http://www.juventuz.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=38575&d=1245130993

dreamer75

08-07-2009, 10:02 PM

17.00 CET today, official presentation of the kits.

SKY ITALIA
http://www.justin.tv/petertv001

dreamer75

08-07-2009, 10:05 PM

:D

qAnUOSeT_bw

dreamer75

08-07-2009, 10:08 PM

Ferrara and Gigi sang well. :D

9kZRT0m-_XI

dreamer75

08-07-2009, 10:52 PM

17.00 CET today, official presentation of the kits.

SKY ITALIA
http://www.justin.tv/petertv001

http://images.alice.it/sg/sportuni/upload/mag/0001/maglia_juventus9.jpg

tjieming

08-07-2009, 10:58 PM

hai the jersey this season quite boring :( don't think gonna buy

dreamer75

08-07-2009, 11:03 PM

http://i25.tinypic.com/2zg9c1c.jpg

dreamer75

08-07-2009, 11:04 PM

http://img33.imageshack.us/img33/7117/seba.png

dreamer75

08-07-2009, 11:06 PM

http://www.j1897network.com/forum/uploads/IMG25293-1246941075.jpg

tjieming

10-07-2009, 01:08 AM

BREAKING NEWS: Juventus Complete Signing Of Felipe Melo

In the last few minutes, Juventus and Fiorentina have completed the transfer involving Felipe Melo and Marco Marchionni...
9 Jul 2009 18:00:14

Juventus have completed the signing of Felipe Melo from Fiorentina, according to Tuttomercatoweb.com.

A deal was reported on Tuesday by Sky Sport Italia and it now seems that the Brazilian will be plying his trade in Turin next season, after signing a five-year deal worth €2.6 million per season.

Official confirmation is expected to arrive from both clubs this evening.

Juventus have paid €20 million plus the full ownership of winger Marco Marchionni, a deal worth €25m in total, the amount set as the player's release clause in a contract he just signed on June 30 with the Viola.

The 26-year-old had an impressive debut season for Fiorentina and was a pivotal figure in Brazil's triumph at the Confederations Cup this June. He was also linked with Arsenal, but the Serie A giants have beaten the Gunners to his signature.

The player has also featured for Almeria, Racing Santander, Mallorca, Gremio, Cruzeiro, and Flamengo during his career.

Adam Scime, Goal.com

Deunamist

10-07-2009, 02:06 AM

this is hilarious... he just signed a 5-year deal with the Viola on 30 June.. LOL

tjieming

10-07-2009, 02:41 AM

lol yea fiorentina signed a new contract with him to add release clause due to his performance in the confederations cup if i'm not wrong

Feador

10-07-2009, 06:30 PM

hopefully Juve can win the serie A this season, its been a long time and i cant stand inter winning it every season

Cissiboy

13-07-2009, 11:36 AM

imho it all depends if Ibra stays anot..if Ibra still inter players..then most probably Inter will win again..

Unless Diego is the real crack i'm hoping to see..

dreamer75

14-07-2009, 09:39 AM

Brazil coach Carlos Dunga has hailed Juventus' transfer of
Felipe Melo, believing the Brazilian midfielder, alongside his co-national Diego, will bring trophies back to Turin.

"I think Melo and Diego will give Juventus plenty of success. The Bianconeri have signed two extraordinary players," Dunga told Tuttosport.

The coach, who won the World Cup as Brazil’s captain in 1994, can even see a little of himself in Melo.

"The analogies are there, although every player is unique. Melo has plenty of character and this is good," added Dunga.

"He has personality and the ability to dictate the game. Melo has great vision and is always aware of what is around him."

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

tjieming

14-07-2009, 09:39 AM

haha i'm quite sad to see marchionni go actually :(

dreamer75

14-07-2009, 09:40 AM

Alessandro Del Piero: Juventus Will Have A Great Season

The veteran Italian striker is confident that the club can overcome their troubles from last season and have a successful 2009-10 campaign.

After Juventus midfielder Momo Sissoko claimed that the Bianconeri are not inferior to anyone in Serie A, captain Alessandro Del Piero has echoed that statement by claiming the Turin-based outfit will have a "great year".

"We're working with great enthusiasm," he was quoted as saying by the Corriere dello Sport at Pinzolo, where the team have begun their pre-season training.

"These days are important. The coach, staff, and some team-mates are all new, but everything is going well and we hope it continues this way, because we want to win."

He then responded to one of the new members of the squad, Diego, who recently claimed Del Piero was a "football genius".

"I thank him. I am sure we will do well on the field and this will be a great year, much better than the last," he concluded.

The World Cup winner managed 20 goals in all competitions last season for the Bianconeri.

Adam Scime, Goal.com

dreamer75

14-07-2009, 09:46 AM

Goal.com Special: Where Do Juventus' New Signings Fit In Formation?

Goal.com mulls over two possible suggestions for the new setup under Ciro Ferrara.

Juventus has been very active in the summer market so far, signing a number of big names.

Fabio Cannavaro returned from Real Madrid on a free transfer, Diego arrived from Werder Bremen, while fellow Brazilian midfielder Felipe Melo is now joining from Fiorentina.

It's been rumored that Fabio Grosso will soon complete his transfer from Lyon, while it is not impossible that Fabiano Santacroce will also follow from Napoli.

Goal.com presents two possible formations for Juventus, with explanatory notes below.

http://i.media.goal.com/g/51594.jpg

4-3-1-2 - This system will certainly suit Diego, as he is at his best when the team is built around him. The three center midfielders will provide a mix of steel, substance, power, pace and flair, while the attack is certain to cause problems for any backline. The only problem with the 4-3-1-2 is that it could mean limited chances for Sebastian Giovinco and David Trezeguet, if he stays. There is also not as much flexibility as with the 4-2-3-1.

4-2-3-1 - The formation that Goal.com believes is most suitable for Juventus. The defense will receive ultimate protection from Felipe Melo and Momo Sissoko, with Cristiano Zanetti and Claudio Marchisio as first reserves. Ciro Ferrara will be blessed by numerous options in the attacking midfield slots, with Iaquinta, Diego, Camoranesi, Giovinco and Del Piero all able to rotate the five positions, and all capable of interpreting different roles. In the lone striker slot, Amauri will be first choice, but both Trezeguet and Iaquinta will be excellent alternatives.

Why not add your thoughts below? What do you believe to be Juventus' best formation this season? Bear in mind that we have not included Fabio Grosso or Fabiano Santacroce in the possible formations above.

Goal.com

dreamer75

14-07-2009, 11:46 AM

Diego De Souza Linked With Juventus Move
The Defensor Sporting midfielder could join the Old Lady...
14 Jul 2009 03:24:26

Diego De Souza has attracted the attention of Italian heavyweights Juventus, and a move could be on the cards in the near future.

The highly-rated Defensor Sporting midfielder has been in top gear for his club in recent years, and he is much of the reason why they have been a success in both the Uruguayan Championship and in the Copa Libertadores.

De Souza, 25, doesn't only have great shooting accuracy and dribbling skills, but he tends to find the back of the net on a regular basis.

He scored Defensor's only goal as they eliminated Boca Juniors from the round of 16 stage of the Copa Libertadores at the Bombonera stadium.

His brilliant performances haven't gone unnoticed, and according to the local press several top European clubs are after his signature.

One club of particular importance are Juventus. The Italian giants are hoping to return to prominence this season, and after securing a number of important signings, including Brazilian attacker Diego, they have confirmed interest in De Souza.

According to reports Ciro Ferrara, the coach of Juventus, has sent scouts to Montevideo to observe the player in the finals of the Uruguayan Championship.

Juventus have found wide success with Uruguayans in the past, with Paolo Montero, Marcelo Zalayeta and Daniel Fonseca being a few players who did proud the prized black and white stripes.

De Souza is extremely gifted in the technical aspect of his game and he is also great with deadball plays. But he also has a wild side, and missed a penalty and was sent off last week, as his team lost a Uruguayan Championship finals game to Nacional.

The midfielder could team-up with former Defensor teammate Martin Caceres, who is expected to be loaned out to Juventus by Barcelona.

Gregory Sica, Goal.com

dreamer75

15-07-2009, 12:12 AM

Ciro Ferrara Invites Pavel Nedved To Assist Him At Juventus

Last week Juventus president Giovanni Cobolli Gigli confirmed that the club had offered Pavel Nedved a technical role and coach Ciro Ferrara is hopeful the midfielder will accept his invitation.

Nedved's future is still up in the air, although the latest reports claim the 36-year-old's playing days are over, but his involvement with the Turin-based outfit could still continue.

"At this moment, Pavel only needs to make a decision," the Bianconeri boss said in a press conference, according to the Gazzetta dello Sport.

"I think his contribution [in this capacity] would be important for this team and I have high hopes in this regard."

Ferrara and Nedved were team-mates at the club from 2001 until the defender's retirement in 2005. The World Cup 2006 participant allegedly turned down a contract from Serie A rivals Inter last week.

Adam Scime, Goal.com

jasonong

16-07-2009, 09:24 AM

Felipe Melo is officially a bianconero!!

who do you guys want next? santacroce? grosso? caceres?

and who do you guys think we should sell? poulsen? molinaro? grygera?

Cissiboy

16-07-2009, 12:23 PM

Grosso already declined. LUCKILY !

Molinaro and Grygera not on the selling list, whereas Poulsen is..

Next should be a versatile defender. Yesterday in the first friendly match of the season Salihamidzic played left back (Ferrara is always testing him that position)

excalibur324

30-07-2009, 03:01 PM

Cissiboy

30-07-2009, 03:07 PM

if u still havent watched first official performance of Diego with Juventus jersey i strongly recommend you the highlights of the match (http://www.videohighlights.net/28072009-juventus-seongnam-ilhwa-peace-cup-2009/) valid for Peace Cup

We will see some good stuff this year !!!

:s12::s12::s12::s12::s12:

Tomorrow against Real madrid leh...

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 10:35 AM

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 10:41 AM

[FRIENDLY] Nancy 1-1 JUVENTUS, July 19th 2009

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:10 AM

[FRIENDLY] JUVENTUS 1-1 Vicenza - 21/07/09

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:16 AM

[FRIENDLY] Nancy 1-1 JUVENTUS, July 19th 2009

Serie A side Juventus played out a 1-1 draw against AS Nancy in Joeuf, as the city was celebrating its 100 year anniversary.

The Bianconeri have had a high-profile summer in the transfer market, but none of their new signings were anywhere to be seen, including former Werder Bremen star Diego.

Amauri opened the scoring after just eight minutes, latching on to promising youngster Ciro Immobile's cross and dispatching the ball into the net to give the Bianconeri the lead. However, Nancy proved to be a tougher opponent than Cisco Roma, who Juventus beat fairly comfortably last week.

Abdeslam Ouaddou took advantage of a Jonathan Zebina error to level matters just before half-time and that deadlock was not broken as the match finished 1-1.

Alessandro Del Piero, who recently signed a new contract, played the full ninety minutes. Meanwhile, Portuguese veteran Tiago, labelled as a flop by some of the Bianconeri fans, put in a promising performance as he looks to prove himself ahead of the 2009-10 campaign.

Adam Scime, Goal.com

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:20 AM

[Peace Cup] Sevilla 1-2 JUVENTUS, July 24th 2009

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:20 AM

[Peace Cup] JUVENTUS 3-0 Seongnam, July 28th 2009

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:20 AM

Peace Cup] JUVENTUS 2-1 Real Madrid, July 31st 2009

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:21 AM

[Peace Cup] JUVENTUS 0-0 (3-4) Aston Villa, August 2nd 2009

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:28 AM

The Old Lady will have asked what else could have gone wrong after being crushed by the Yellow Submarine...
7 Aug 2009 21:50:44

Juventis 1-4 Villarreal
Pre-season scores

Santi Cazorla broke the deadlock in the first half with a spectacular long range shot, before Nilmar and Robert Pires extended Villarreal's lead. Amauri made it 3-1 towards the end of the game but Pires scored his second of the night to break Juventus' hearts.

In the first half, both teams created their share of danger in the early stages as they almost took turns in producing chances on goal.

Villarreal had a great opportunity in the 35th minute, when a long ball found Giuseppe Rossi running, and the Italian combined it well with Nilmar before firing a low shot straight into Manninger's hands.

There were penalty claims right by Villarreal right after, when Cani moved past Fabio Cannavaro in the Juventus box and the ball hit the defender's hand, but the keeper waved away the protests.

Villareal found the net on 42 minutes as Felipe Melo fell when marking Cazorla, which gave the winger far too much room in front of the area and he made perfect use of it with a strong left-foot shot into the top corner.

It was a deserved lead for the Spanish men, who had enjoyed almost 60 per cent of possession in the first period.

Despite making several substitutions at half time, Villarreal continued controlling the game and doubled their lead just six minutes into the second half, when Manninger defended Jonathan's powerful shot and the ball fell to Nilmar, who was close to head home.

The Yellow Submarine's lead would again be extended on 78 minutes, when Escudero played Jonathan through, and the young striker moved past Cannavaro easily before sending in a low cross to Pires, who was on hand to side-foot home.

Juventus scored in the 85th minute through Amauri, when he fired from close range following a corner from the right.

But there was still time for more Villarreal action as Escudero's cross from the left went straight to Robert Pires, who fired an unstoppable right-foot shot home.

It was a well-deserved win for Villarreal, who confirmed their chances must not be written off this season. As for Juventus, the only positive thing they can take from this match is Martin Caceres' debut for the club.

Luís Mira, Goal.com

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:28 AM

[FRIENDLY] JUVENTUS vs Juventus B, August 11th 2009

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:30 AM

Players IN:

- Fabio Cannavaro D C 1973 Real Madrid (0m €)
- Diego Ribas da Cunha AM C 1985 Werder Bremen (24.5m €)*
- Michele Paolucci F C 1986 Udinese (3.5m €)
- Cristian Fiori D L 1995 Carso Latina (tba)
- Felipe Melo DM 1983 Fiorentina (25m €)
- Federico Todella ST 1994 Esperia Viareggio (tba)
- Matteo Galiera ST 1995 Ventimiglia (tba)
- Federico Mattiello AM C 1995 Sporting Lucchese (tba)
- Martin Cáceres D RLC 1987 Barcelona (loan)**

TOTAL: 53m €

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:31 AM

Players OUT:

- Dario Knežević D C 1982 Livorno (End of loan)
- Pavel Nedved M LC 1972 End of contract
- Olof Mellberg D RC 1977 Olympiakos (2.5m €)
- Matteo Cavagna AM RLC 1985 Ravenna (tba)
- Giuseppe Rizza D C 1987 Livorno (tba)
- Lorenzo Del Prete D RC 1986 Siena (tba)
- Rey Volpato ST 1986 Bari (tba)
- Tomas Guzman F C 1982 Piacenza (tba)
- Marco Marchionni AM R 1980 Fiorentina (4.5m €)
- Andrea Ciolli D C 1989 Pro Vercelli (tba)
- Stefano Di Cuonzo D R 1985 Catanzaro (tba)
- Cristiano Zanetti DM 1977 Fiorentina (2m €)

TOTAL: 9m €

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:31 AM

Loans:

- Albin Ekdal M C 1989 Siena
- Luca Castiglia M C 1989 Cesena
- Salvatore D'Elia D L 1989 Figline
- Marco Duravia D R 1989 Figline
- Davide Lanzafame AM RL, F C 1987 Parma
- Riccardo Maniero ST 1987 Arezzo
- Raffaele Bianco M C 1987 Modena
- Cristian Pasquato F C 1989 Empoli
- Andrea Ciolli D LC 1989 Pro Vercelli
- Luca Lagnese D R 1987 Canavese
- Alessandro D'Antoni F C 1988 Figline
- Nicola Cosentini M C 1988 Figline
- Carlo Vecchione M LC 1988 Clermont
- Dario Venitucci* M C 1987 Arezzo
- Samon Reider Rodriguez F C 1988 Alessandria
- Oussama Essabr* F C 1989 Arezzo
- Andrea Pisani D LC 1987 Cittadella
- Federico Mirarchi D C 1990 Isola Liri
- Yobie Bassaoule D C 1988 Isola Liri
- Luca Lagnese D R 1987 Isola Liri
- Ayub Daud F C Crotone

Co-Ownerships:

- Davide Lanzafame AM RL, F C 1987 Palermo (renewed)
- Raffaele Palladino AM RL, F C 1984 Genoa (renewed)
- Andre Cuneaz AM L 1987 Ravenna (renewed)
- Andrea Pozzato GK 1988 Canavese (renewed)
- Domenico Criscito D LC 1986 Genoa (5.5m €)
- Antonio Mirante GK 1983 Sampdoria (renewed)
- Marcelo Zalayeta ST 1978 Napoli (renewed)
- Michele Paolucci F C 1986 Siena (tba)
- Francesco Camilli DM 1989 Carrarese (tba)
- Andrea Torta D LC 1989 Foggia (tba)
- Mattia Graziano Petitti GK 1991 Pro Vercelli (tba)
- Alessandro Vono GK 1988 Catanzaro (tba)

TOTAL: 5.5m €

GRAND TOTAL: 38.5m €

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:32 AM

Felipe Melo

http://www.champions365.com/images/img/user/1168.jpg

Date of birth: June 26, 1983 (1983-06-26) (age 26)
Place of birth: Volta Redonda, Brazil
Height: 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Weight: 78 kg
Playing position: Defensive midfielder
Number: 4
Fee: 25m €
Contract: 2014

Senior career
Years Club Apps (Gls)
2001–2003 Flamengo
2003 Cruzeiro 29 0(1)
2004 Grêmio 19 0(3)
2005 Mallorca 8 0(0)
2005–2007 Racing de Santander 48 0(6)
2007–2008 Almería 34 0(7)
2008–2009 Fiorentina 29 0(2)
2009-........Juventus

National team
2009– Brazil 10 0(2)

Felipe Melo de Carvalho (born 26 June 1983 in Volta Redonda) is a Brazilian footballer, who currently plays as a defensive midfielder for Juventus.

Club career

Melo began his career in Flamengo, Cruzeiro and Grêmio in his native Brazil. Melo moved to Spain, joining Real Mallorca at the end of the 2004–05 season. Afterwards, he joined Racing Santander, where he spent two seasons, before moving on to Almería. After a successful first season at Almería, Melo agreed to transfer to Italian side Fiorentina in a €13 million transfer for the 2008–09 season. This was confirmed after Almería's match against Recreativo in La Liga. He made his debut in the first leg of the third qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League against Slavia Prague, and scored his first goal in a viola shirt against Atalanta in the Serie A.

On 30 June 2009 he signed a new 5-year contract with Viola.

International career

Melo made his debut for Brazil on 10 February 2009 against Italy in a friendly match, which Brazil won 2–0. He scored his first goal in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification over Peru. Brazil won 3–0. At the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, Melo scored the opening goal in a 3–0 victory over United States. Melo started all five games at the competition as Brazil went on to win the trophy.

Honours

Flamengo

* Campeonato Carioca (Rio de Janeiro State League): 2001
* Copa dos Campeões (Brazilian Champions Cup): 2001

Cruzeiro

* Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (Brazilian League): 2003
* Copa do Brasil (Brazilian Cup): 2003
* Campeonato Mineiro (Minas Gerais State League): 2003

International

* FIFA Confederations Cup: 2009

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:33 AM

http://images.football.co.uk/Dynamic/News/400x400/MartinCaceresNew.jpg

Date of birth: April 7, 1987 (1987-04-07) (age 22)
Place of birth: Montevideo, Uruguay
Height: 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Weight: 77 kg
Playing position: Centre back, Right Back and Left Back
Number: 2
Fee: loan with rights to buy(11m € + 1m € for goals reached)
Contract:

Senior career
Years Club Apps (Gls)
2006–2007 Defensor Sporting 26 0(4)
2007–2008 Villarreal 000 0(0)
2007–2008 → Recreativo (loan) 34 0(2)
2008–2009 FC Barcelona 13 0(0)
2009- Juventus

National team
2007– Uruguay 15 0(0)

José Martín Cáceres signed for Barça in the summer of 2008 after a good season with Recreativo Huelva. The young Uruguayan defender had had, until then, a short, but intense, sporting career.

Martín Cáceres (7 April, 1987) started his career in the junior ranks of Defensor Montevideo and made his debut in the Uruguayan first division for the club in 2006. He played seventeen games, scored four goals and was shown five yellow cards. In the following season he would only play nine games with Defensor because his professional career would take a big step forward in the summer of 2007.
First, he took part in the South America U-20s championships where he helped Uruguay to third place as well as being named the tournament’s best defender. Cáceres repeated his fine performances in the U-20s World Cup in Canada and so generated interest from some European clubs.

Villarreal signed him in August 2007 but loaned him out to Recreativo. Martín Cáceres played a huge role in keeping the Andalusian side in the first division. Wearing the number 4 shirt, he played 34 games, scoring two goals and receiving ten yellow cards.

His fine season in Huelva brought him some recognition. He was included in UEFA’s team of upcoming stars for the 2007/08 season, along with Bojan Krkic. He also became a permanent fixture in the Uruguayan national side. His progress attracted FC Barcelona, who signed him in the summer of 2008.

Cáceres has struggled to find a place in Guardiola’s first team plans, but still made 23 appearances in his first season.

PROFILE

Martín Cáceres, who stands at 1.82m, is noted for his aerial power, speed, aggression and bravery. And as well as playing as a central defender he can also play at full back or in a holding midfield role. With both Defensor Montevideo and Recreativo, as well as the Uruguayan national side, he has shown great leadership skills in defence, despite his young age.

HONOURS

FC Barcelona
2008/09 Champions League
2008/09 Liga
2008/09 Copa del Rey

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:36 AM

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2674/3808891394_52ac0da2fc_o.jpg

http://juventuscalcio.blogspot.com/2009/08/pictures-juventus-training-10-8-09.html

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:36 AM

ests ok for Diego, 17 called-up for Villar Perosa
After two days of rest, the team returned to training in Vinovo. Reduced squad due to 12 internationals being absent.

Twelve absent and 12 on the field. Ferrara and his staff (including birthday boy Michelangelo Rampulla) worked with Manninger, Chimenti, Caceres, Legrottaglie, Molinaro, Almiron, Salihamidzic, Marrone, Yago, Amauri, Del Piero and Trezeguet.

De Ceglie, Diego, Giovinco and Zebina worked separately. The medical staff spoke of the conditions of the Brazilian, the Turin playmaker and the Frenchman in their medical bulletin.

Diego underwent today another magnetic resonance imaging test as well as a spectroscopy which showed the healing of the muscle strain to the femoral of the right thigh. During the week he will increase the workload in training until he joins the team.

The Frenchman felt a pain to the right Achilles tendon while Sebastian had a painful left thigh. The conditions of both will be verified tomorrow.

In light of these absences, 17 bianconeri have been called-up for the classical pre-season friendly match against the Primavera.

Together with the 12 players who were on the field in the afternoon, are 5 youngsters from the team of Luciano Bruni. These are defenders Bamba, De Paola, Alcibiade and Serino and midfielder Pirrotta.

Juventus.com

dreamer75

11-08-2009, 11:38 AM

http://edicola.tuttosport.com/newsmem/tuttosport/20090805/ttsnaztut050809105a.pdf.0/img/Image_1.jpg

The years the players been at the club and number of appearances and goals

dreamer75

19-08-2009, 09:13 PM

Ferrara hails classy Diego Tuesday 18 August, 2009

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Juventus boss Ciro Ferrara wasn’t too disappointed with defeat to Milan. “We leave San Siro with our heads held high and Diego,” he noted.

The Bianconeri were edged out of the Trofeo Berlusconi tie on penalties, but only after their Brazilian fantasista lit up the Meazza.

Not only did the £21m summer signing return from injury to give Juventus the lead, but he was at the centre of everything good for the Old Lady.

“We leave San Siro with our heads held up high and having re-found an important player like Diego,” said Ferrara.

“He has great quality with and without the ball. He is good at finding space and is also very powerful.

“He’s not 100 per cent fit, but he did some classy things out there.”

Having beaten Milan 2-0 on Friday night, Ferrara’s troops failed to hang on for victory after Alexandre Pato headed in an equaliser.

“We came here to win, but we were not able to. It was a pretty balanced game and the result is correct,” added the tactician.

“We did get a bit stretched at times, perhaps because of the heat, but overall the side did well out there.”

Captain Alessandro Del Piero was expected to start the game, but he wasn’t even named on the bench.

“Del Piero had a problem with his back and we didn’t want to risk playing him. We hope to have him available for Sunday.”

Juve take on Chievo in their opening League game of the season at the weekend.

dreamer75

19-08-2009, 09:13 PM

Diego is new Juve hero Wednesday 19 August, 2009

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Diego has already won over the Juventus fans in just two games and won’t hide his ambition. “We can win Scudetto and Champions League.”

The Brazilian was signed from Werder Bremen for £20m and due to a recurring muscular problem has only made two appearances this summer, but scored in both.

“Now that I have resolved my injury worries, I am counting on 100 per cent fitness for the start of the season and on top form for early September,” he told the Gazzetta dello Sport.

“I am convinced that with this side we can aim for the very top of this sport, as we can win the Scudetto and the Champions League.

“That is even more important when we consider this is Juventus – a team that can never be content just to take part.”

Bianconeri supporters are already wild about Diego and so is their President, Giovanni Cobolli Gigli.

“Now I am waiting to see Diego duet with Alessandro Del Piero. It will be a sight for sore eyes,” grinned the patron.

“He is a lad with great personality, he defends the ball, attacks, has moments of incredible genius and is already recognised as a leader within the squad. Diego is a fantastic buy.”

dreamer75

19-08-2009, 09:14 PM

The Bianconeri are aiming high in the coming campaign...
19 Aug 2009 12:00:32

For the first time since the Calciopoli crisis, Juventus have a real shot at winning the Scudetto. The Bianconeri have seemingly recovered from the scandal that sent them to Serie B three years ago and are now ready to challenge for the title in Italy.

There is plenty of passion behind the Bianconeri cause from the supporters, who want to see their team regain their ‘rightful’ place. Falling short of the mark last season both domestically and in Europe, plenty has gone on in Turin during the summer months in an effort to usurp the dominating force of Inter.

Summer Market

Keen to make up for last season’s disappointment, Juventus confirmed Ciro Ferrara’s continuation as coach and embarked on an ambitious transfer campaign. The club’s first move was to bring back veteran defender Fabio Cannavaro, a transfer that sections of the fans opposed due to the Italian international’s decision to leave for Real Madrid in 2006. Meanwhile, youngster Martin Caceres later joined from Barcelona on loan.

Then the midfield, a particular problem area last season, was reinforced with Brazilian duo Felipe Melo from Fiorentina and Diego of Werder Bremen, who cost sporting director Alessio Secco and company a quite significant expenditure of approximately €45 million combined. On their way out of Turin were Marco Marchionni and Cristiano Zanetti to Fiorentina, while promising Domenico Criscito, who could have filled the left-back position, will now stay with Genoa.

Shot-stopper Antonio Mirante, striker Marcelo Zalayeta, and winger Raffaele Palladino were all deemed surplus to requirements at present and involved in co-ownership deals. The saga with David Trezeguet surprisingly seems to indicate he will be staying.

Werder you want? | Diego is now at Juve's service

Squad

Gianluigi Buffon is the overwhelming option in net, while his international team-mates Fabio Cannavaro and Giorgio Chiellini make up the defensive core. The question-marks surround the full-backs, an area that has been problematic over the last few months - Jonathan Zebina and Zdenek Grygera will battle for a place on the right and Cristian Molinaro and Paolo De Ceglie on the left.

New boy Diego will play in the slot behind the strikers, while Felipe Melo is also guaranteed a spot in front of the defence. Mauro Camoranesi, Momo Sissoko, Tiago, and Claudio Marchisio are the other options in the middle of park.

In attack, The Bianconeri have a whole host of capable forwards - including captain Alessandro Del Piero, Amauri, Vincenzo Iaquinta, and David Trezeguet.

Star Man

Plenty of stars reside with the Old Lady of Italian football like their talisman Alessandro Del Piero, new playmaker Diego, and tough centre-back Giorgio Chiellini, but despite all their prominent players, the most important may be goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon between the sticks. Some Italian pundits suggest that with his miraculous saves, ‘Gigi’ adds up to 15 points per season to whichever side he is playing for – a bold statement, but the World Cup winner has proven to be back among the best in Europe after he missed a majority of last year through injury.

Come On | Gigi's saves can lift the Bianconeri

One To Watch

Neglected by Claudio Ranieri and his rigid 4-4-2 formation in 2008-09, youngster Sebastian Giovinco is likely to have a few more opportunities to shine this season. Impressing at the European Under-21 championships, the ‘Atomic Ant’ has admitted he will play the vice-Diego, but many are hoping he is given a chance to prove himself, as the 22-year-old playmaker certainly has the skill to become a household name in the next few years and is even viewed as the heir to Alessandro Del Piero.

One in a Million | Gio's chances should increase

Coach

After Caludio Ranieri lost control of both results and the faith of his players last season, Ciro Ferrara was brought in for the final two matches of the league campaign, leading his side to two victories; thus club management decided it would be a good idea to stick with him this season.

One feels he will have limited time to prove hismelf, as Juventus have been success-starved since their demotion to Serie B as a result of Calciopoli. In the end, all that will matter is whether he can maintain the pace at the top of the standings.

We're Watching | Ciro is under the microscope

Objective

It's simple - The Scudetto. In the minds of the tifosi, the club have gone far too long without domestic success and they are still hurting from the two revoked titles. The main goal is to win one of those back this season, as a starting point for many more.

Adam Scime, Goal.com

dreamer75

19-08-2009, 09:17 PM

http://i.media.goal.com/g/54015.jpg

dreamer75

19-08-2009, 09:18 PM

http://i.media.goal.com/g/52369_hp.jpg

dreamer75

19-08-2009, 09:20 PM

Juventus are lining up a bid for Olympique Lyonnais right-back Francois Clerc, who missed much of last term due to a serious knee injury.

Although a number of the powers-that-be at the Old Lady have claimed that their summer transfer campaign is over, they will be forced into action again if Fenerbahce meet their asking price for Zdenek Grygera.

The Czech is valued at around €6 million, a price-tag Fener have been reluctant to meet so far.

In case of Grygera's departure, Juventus have been drawing up a shortlist of replacement right-backs, with Schalke's Rafinha, Lazio's Lorenzo De Silvestri and Lyon's Clerc the most prominent figures.

Juve are hoping to pick the latter up on the cheap, as his contract ends in 2010. Clerc is currently refusing to renew his deal with OL, leaving the door open for a move to Turin.

"The gossip has reached me, [but there are] no official offers yet," Clerc told Tuttosport.

"Juve is one of those clubs that no player could turn down. It is up to them when they want to come forward - I am here.

"[Serie A] is a great league, and for a professional footballer it represents an exciting challenge. In principle, it is an experience that I would like to try but that is discounting my current contract situation."

Anthony Wright, Goal.com

dreamer75

19-08-2009, 09:20 PM

MILAN, 18 August 2009 - "Lippi said that Juventus will win the scudetto? That shows a lack of respect." If he said that, it makes me wonder." Josè Mourinho, the Inter coach, had that to say about yesterday's prediction by the national team coach, Marcello Lippi. Before attending the Berlusconi Trophy function, the national team coach told Sky Sport that Juventus will win the scudetto.

THE REACTION TO LIPPI - "I did not hear what he said, but if what I have read is true, it's the first time I've heard of a national team coach, someone with an enormous amount of responsibility in Italian football, predict a team's success. If it's true, it really makes me wonder. If it's true, it shows a lack of respect," added Mourinho, speaking to the Inter Channel. Mourinho then said that he expected there would be "a reaction at the national level of football" to Lippi's comment. "The championship seems to be over before it has started," said Mourinho, with no small amount of irony. "It's normal for journalists to give their opinion and say that 'Juve will win the title'. It's normal for Juve's management and coach to say something like that, but it's the first time I've read of a national team coach saying this sort of thing."

THE NATIONAL COACH'S RESPONSE - "I'm sorry if Mourinho interpreted my comment in that way: it was simply a prediction, one of the many theories that are bandied about before the start of the championship." Marcello Lippi was surprised by the verbal attack from Inter's manager. "I give thousands of interviews. For three years I've been saying that Inter is the best team. Yesterday, in a interview that covered many things, I gave a quick reply to a question about the upcoming championship and I said that I thought Juventus would win. On many other occasions I've said good things about other teams, and I think things have been exaggerated in this case. Just take another look at the interview. I was asked there and then "who will win the scudetto", and I said what I thought. Mourinho seemed to me to be an intelligent person, and I'm sorry that he interpreted my comment differently: but there is no problem. I said what I said..."

AND MOU'S REJOINDER - Josè Mourinho replied to Lippi with a message on Inter's web site. "Exaggeration? Certainly not on my part," he said, "because if it was a prediction, as Lippi has in fact confirmed it was, it was an exaggerated prediction, and one which the top figure in Italian football should never make. And it's of little relevance if in previous interviews, a year ago or a month ago, Lippi said good things about Inter or other clubs. Yesterday evening the top person in Italian football gave a precise indication about the outcome of a championship that has yet to start. This does seem right to me, and I say this calmly as a club manager to the national coach."

gasport

excalibur324

19-08-2009, 11:03 PM

Cissiboy

20-08-2009, 09:53 AM

Mourinho is an asshole. Full stop

Sissoko is out for an undefined period..(2 months) and Felipe melo is dsq on first game of league..so Midfield will have Marchisio / Poulsen / Tiago if Camoranesi not ok..

Chievo is in good shape..but i hope no surprises..with this Diego we can win every match

excalibur324

21-08-2009, 10:24 PM

Cissiboy

22-08-2009, 11:20 AM

it will be a night match...****...cannot wake up at 2.45am to watch juve-chievo ...next week got Roma-Juve if im not wrong...much more interesting

Sissoko...in some way it is good he is injured now..cos last year during ramadan he was not in great shape (obviously)

dreamer75

22-08-2009, 09:17 PM

22 August 2009
Twenty called-up for match against Chievo

There’s good news for Ciro Ferrara on the eve of the first championship match: Alessandro Del Piero and Tiago have recovered and are available. For the match against Chievo, the coach called-up 20 players. This is the complete list:

1 Buffon
3 Chiellini
5 Cannavaro
7 Salihamidzic
8 Marchisio
9 Iaquinta
10 Del Piero
11 Amauri
13 Manninger
16 Camoranesi
17 Trezeguet
18 Poulsen
19 Molinaro
21 Grygera
23 Ariaudo
28 Diego
29 De Ceglie
30 Tiago
33 Legrottaglie
39 Marrone

Cissiboy

24-08-2009, 10:03 AM

Diego played superb, Iaquinta header gave us 1-0 victory and 3 points in the bag !!

Good job

dreamer75

30-08-2009, 05:55 PM

Roma welcome Juventus to the Eternal City, desperate to break the Bianconeri's dominance on this fixture...

Aug 28, 2009 5:26:57 PM

Kick Off: Sunday August 30, 20:45CET
Stadio Olimpico, Rome.

Roma's False Start

Luciano Spalletti's side got off on the wrong foot last week against Genoa. The Giallorossi, who looked shaky heading into the game, showed all the signs of a team who will have their work cut out for them this Sunday when Juventus come to town. After falling behind, the Lupi took 2-1 lead over the Griffoni, but they threw it away in the last 22 minutes, and lost the game 3-2, albeit in controversial fashion.

Plenty of noise and reaction followed after the defeat, but Spalletti is hoping his men turn it around. It's not the start he wanted, and with two of the three Scudetto challengers picking up maximum points last week, the coach will want to ensure no further ground is lost.

Last season's fixtures against the Bianconeri were nothing short of disastrous. Roma lost 2-0 in Turin last November, and they were thrashed 4-1 at home back in March. The records do not make good reading. The Lupi have not won any of their last six matches against the Old Lady. In those games they have slumped to four losses and two draws, while conceding 14 goals and scoring just five.

In 167 matches between these clubs, Roma have lost 78, drawn 49, and won 40, scoring 180 goals against the Bianconeri. You have to go back to February 2004 to see a Giallorossi win. That game ended 4-0 to the home side with Olivier Dacourt, Francesco Totti and a double from Antonio Cassano completing the rout. Totti will be playing his 15th game against the Bianconeri this weekend - a statistic he shares with opposite number Alessandro Del Piero.

Despite the club's loss to Genoa, the players will be feeling confident following their progression into the Europa League group stages having thrashed Kosice 7-1 on Thursday night. Spalletti is hoping his players carry that air of positiveness into the big game.

"We will arrive tranquil for Sunday's game, and I think we will be able to play our cards right against Juventus," said the coach.

Totti: On form following his Kosice hat-trick

Juventus Up And Running

Ciro Ferrara's men stumbled out from the starting blocks against Chievo Verona but still picked up their first victory of the campaign last week. It was an ugly game in Turin, but just enough to make the Old Lady smile again. A Vincenzo Iaquinta header settled the affair, giving his coach a selection headache in terms of who to pick for the away day in Rome. Iaquinta has a habit of scoring against the Giallorossi. It was he who grabbed a double in the capital last term.

In 75 games at the Olimpico against Roma, Juventus have won 22, drawn 25 and lost 28 times. They have scored 88 goals and conceded 111. La Vecchia Signora have been good travellers in the capital over the last decade. In ten matches there, they have won five, drawn four and lost just once, scoring 16, and conceding 11 goals.

The Bianconeri will fancy their chances given their recent record. However, Ferrara has stressed that his men shouldn't underestimate the Lupi and he fears the frustrations of the opening day defeat to Genoa as well as the massive win in Europe will see a backlash from his opponents.

Having started well, the players are looking to continue in the right direction. Giorgio Chiellini believes a win in Rome will confirm his side's ability to move onto greater things. The stopper claims three points will apply the pressure on bitter Scudetto rivals Inter.

"Winning in Rome will be a test of our strength and that will be important at this particular moment," Chiellini told the press.

"We have reduced the gap with Inter compared to last year and we are well aware that we can fight for the Scudetto."

Form Guide

Roma

August 27 v Kosice (H) - Won 7-1 (Europe League)

August 21 v Genoa (A) - Lost 3-2 (Serie A)

August 20 v Kosice (A) - Drew 3-3 (Europa League)

August 13 v Grosseto (A) - Won 2-0 (Friendly)

August 6 v Gent (A) - Won 7-1 (Europa League)

Juventus

August 23 v Chievo Verona (H) - Won 1-0 (Serie A)

August 17 v Milan (A) - Drew 1-1 (Berlusconi trophy)

August 14 v Inter (A) - Drew 1-1 (TIM trophy)

August 14 v Milan (A)- Won 2-0 (TIM trophy)

August 7 v Villarreal (A) - Lost 4-1 (Friendly)

Team News

Roma

Mirko Vucinic, Julio Baptista, Simone Perrotta and Juan have all recovered from various knocks. Baptista's fitness still isn't 100 per cent though, and his appearance is in doubt. Vucinic made his return midweek against Kosice. He showed signs of form after hitting the post during his short time on the pitch, and so he is in contention. Juan should be available for selection, he has been training well and could start at the back. Vitorinio Antunes is struggling with an ankle problem though and he is unlikely to feature.

Probable Starting XI 4-3-1-2: Artur; Motta, Mexes, Burdisso, Riise; Taddei, Pizarro, De Rossi; Totti, Vucinic, Menez.

Juventus

Felipe Melo has shrugged off a thigh problem and he is ready to travel to Rome after doing well in Friday's training session. There were similar fears for Diego, but he has also made a recovery and stands a chance of playing. Mohamed Sissoko (foot) and Jonathan Zebina (ankle) are unavailable. There are no suspensions for the away team. Sebastian Giovinco seems to have recovered from his thigh strain, but his appearance is not guaranteed. Tiago has a foot problem and is doubtful. Hasan Salihamidzic is still training in the gym.

Probable Starting XI 4-3-1-2: Buffon; Grygera, Cannavaro, Chiellini, De Ceglie; Camoranesi, Poulsen, Marchisio; Diego, Amauri, Del Piero.

Players To Watch

Francesco Totti (Roma)

Keep an eye out on Totti. This game is likely to be a personal duel with Del Piero. Juve need no introduction to the Giallorosso, and he is their biggest threat. He scored a hat-trick against Kosice. The Old Lady has been warned.

Diego (Juventus)

Showed touches of magic last week. The Brazilian could have scored a double against Chievo, perhaps he was saving the goals for this one. He should be back with a bang as he aims to become the leader in Rome.

Prediction

Both these teams have similar ambitions this term. Top four material in their own right, this match is bound to throw up some exciting moments throughout. Expect to see plenty of goal action at either end with a draw at the final whistle.

Roma 2-2 Juventus

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

dreamer75

30-08-2009, 05:56 PM

tough match coming up, hope Diego can tear Roma up :)

dreamer75

30-08-2009, 05:59 PM

It's now or never for the Italian international's transfer to the Old Lady...
Aug 30, 2009 10:35:17 AM

Fabio Grosso could remain an Olympique Lyonnais player, after Juventus refused to increase their bid for the World Cup winner.

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the Bianconeri hierarchy are not budging on their €2m bid for the 31-year-old full-back, telling Lyon to take it or leave it.

Grosso's sale would mark a huge loss for l'OL, who paid around €7m to purchase the left back from Inter in 2007. Grosso finds himself competing with new signing Aly Cissokho at Stade Gerland, however, and is eager to join the Bianconeri.

Zenit St Petersburg are still reportedly interested in the 'hero of Berlin', and should they make a higher bid, it could force Juventus to increase their own offer.

The former Palermo left back has played 53 times in Ligue 1 for les Gones, scoring twice.

Anthony Wright, Goal.com

WuSangui

31-08-2009, 01:25 PM

I saw Diego play. He is a world class player. Good buy from Old Lady. ;)

excalibur324

31-08-2009, 03:06 PM

I saw Diego play. He is a world class player. Good buy from Old Lady. ;)
he was outstanding~

dreamer75

31-08-2009, 11:51 PM

FT AS Roma [1 - 3] Juventus

25' [0 - 1] Diego

35' [1 - 1] D.D. Rossi

68' [1 - 2] Diego

90' [1 - 3] F. Melo

dreamer75

31-08-2009, 11:52 PM

Roma 1-3 Juventus: Brazilian Magic As Diego & Felipe Melo Down Roma

Diego-inspired Juventus continued their perfect start to the new season with a 3-1 win at the

Diego underlined his status as the next possible star of Italian football with two brilliant goals, while Felipe Melo scored on his debut, as Juventus beat Roma 3-1 at the Stadio Olimpico in a thrilling game full of chances, during which the woodwork was also hit twice.

The heat was on both these sides coming into the game. Inter's stunning 4-0 win in the Milan Derby yesterday meant Juventus needed to prove their Scudetto credentials, while Roma required a result after losing in their seasonal opener at Genoa last week.

The Giallorossi were not at full strength, with Cicinho, Alexander Doni, Marco Andreolli, Matteo Brighi, and Stefano Chuka Okaka all missing. Francesco Totti led the line supported by Jeremy Menez and Simone Perrotta in a new 4-3-2-1 formation. Julio Sergio started in goal in place of the error-prone Artur.

Juventus were minus Mohamed Sissoko, Jonathan Zebina, and Hasan Salihamidzic. Felipe Melo made his official debut following his summer move from Fiorentina, while Amauri and Vincenzo Iaquinta continued in attack, meaning Alessandro Del Piero and David Trezeguet were on the bench.

There was an even start to the game, but Juve were the first to threaten as Iaquinta peeled off down the left and whipped in a cross to the back post, which Amauri was inches away from getting his head to.

Juventus looked dangerous in the air, and were desperately close to scoring on 21 minutes as a free kick from the left was flicked on by Tiago but Julio Sergio produced a brilliant save to tip the ball around the post.

The deadlock was broken on 24 minutes as Diego scored his first goal in Italian football with a stunning run and finish from the half-way line. The Brazilian pick-pocketed Marco Cassetti on the centre circle, shrugged off the Italian before skinning John Arne Riise and flicking the ball past Julio Sergio with the outside of his boot.

Juventus looked in complete control but completely out of the blue Roma equalised in incredible circumstances. David Pizarro took a quick free kick 35 yards out to Daniele De Rossi who unleashed a rocket into the top corner that took Gianluigi Buffon completely by surprise.

The Bianconeri reacted and almost restored their lead three minutes before half time, as Diego fed Amauri who curled a precise shot past Julio Sergio, only to see it bounce off the post to safety.

Yet with the last kick of the half, Roma should have gone ahead. The hosts broke from midfield and Menez slipped Totti clean through on goal but he was denied by an extraordinary Buffon save.

Diegoooooal!

Roma made one change at half time as Max Tonetto replaced Taddei. But it was Juventus who the next chance fell to as the ball deflected into Amauri's path from a Felipe Melo cross, but Julio Sergio produced another fine reaction stop.

Juventus were squandering a lot of chances, and on 57 minutes Iaquinta ran through on goal after escaping De Rossi, but couldn't steer the ball in as Nicolas Burdisso made a crucial last-gasp challenge. Soon after Julio Sergio charged into no-man's land, but Iaquinta's header was over.

Just past the hour mark Juve received a blow as Claudio Marchisio was forced off with a foot injury to be replaced by Mauro Camoranesi.

The chances continued to come, and Julio Sergio made his umpteenth save of the game by pushing away an Amauri header.

Juventus finally regained the lead on 67 minutes, and again it was that man Diego. The former Werder Bremen man found himself one-on-one with Philippe Mexes, and dummied delightfully before burying his finish past Julio Sergio.

Roma tried to react by introducing Mirko Vucinic, and Menez turned De Ceglie inside out before lashing across the six-yard box. Vucinic also headed wide.

Tiago twice scuffed half-chances as Juventus looked to kill the game, but Roma were also threatening more and more. The Giallorossi were so close to getting a second equaliser as Totti unleashed a daisycutter that crashed off the post.

It was a truly epic game and with six minutes to go Juventus twice could have closed the game as Chiellini shot wide and Julio Sergio saved from Diego.

In injury time, Juventus did kill off the match as debutant Felipe Melo burst through from midfield and slammed home left-footed from 25 yards into the bottom corner.

Juve made it maximum points from their first two games, and sent out a Scudetto-warning shot, while Roma are still pointless.

Anthony Sormani, Goal.com

dreamer75

01-09-2009, 12:00 AM

Serie A Team Of The Week: Round 2

Formation: 3-4-3

Goalkeeper

Luca Castellazzi (Sampdoria): It is not easy to limit a team with the offensive punch of Udinese, and Sampdoria should give some of the credit for their victory to their veteran shot stopper, who made three decisive saves, including a miraculous one on Simone Pepe.

Defence

Maicon (Inter): The Brazilian put relentless pressure on Milan by attacking them at every opportunity, pinning the Rossoneri back for large portions of them match. His efforts were rewarded with a clinical finish to kill off the match near the end of the first half.

Fabio Cannavaro (Juventus): It’s two weeks in a row for the Italy captain, who once again marshalled the Juventus back line with remarkable poise. He may be aging, but his experience and positioning is a wonder to behold.

Alessandro Gamberini (Fiorentina): Palermo threatened time and time again, but the centre-back was on hand to close them down when needed. The 1-0 victory in Florence can be attributed as much to him as goal scorer Stevan Jovetic.

Midfield

Diego (Juventus): If any fans had doubts about Diego’s ability to compete in Serie A, they were surely put to rest by his performance against the Giallorossi. Two key goals and now a proven match winner for the Bianconeri.

Daniele De Rossi (Roma): A wonderful long range strike and a never-say-die-attitude from the talisman puts him in this week’s best XI, despite being on the losing side. He surely did not deserve to be, as he fought until the very end at the Stadio Olimpico.

Felipe Melo (Juventus): Another excellent summer addition for La Vecchia Signora. He was a great anchor in the midfield, winning plenty of balls and moving forward quickly to spark counterattacks. Sealed his Serie A debut for the club with a late goal too!

Marek Hamsik (Napoli): The Slovakian will be a future star. His dribbling, passing, and shooting ability make him one of the greatest attacking threats in Serie A at just 22, and his goal was simply astounding – dribbling three players and chipping the on-rushing goalkeeper.

Attack

Fabio Quagliarella (Napoli): The Naples native was waiting to score in front of the fans at the Stadio San Paolo, and he did not disappoint with a well-taken brace and exuberant celebrations. ‘Spectacular’ should be his middle name.

Diego Milito (Inter): He understands the game so well, a true class act on the pitch. The Argentine is not only a target man, but a creator. He split the Milan defence with two beautiful slide rule passes and also dispatched a confident penalty into the roof of the net. ‘El Principe’ is picking up where he left off last season.

Antonio Cassano (Sampdoria): He missed a penalty and still makes it onto our Team of the Week. Devastating is the only way to describe his backheel assist and right foot drive that sealed the points against Udinese.

Castellazzi
Maicon - Cannavaro - Gamberini
Diego - Felipe Melo - De Rossi - Hamsik
Quagliarella - Milito - Cassano

Honourable Mention

Javier Zanetti (Inter)
Dejan Stankovic (Inter)
Thiago Motta (Inter)
Samuel Eto'o (Inter)
Julio Sergio (Roma)
Emanuele Calaio (Siena)
Fernando Muslera (Lazio)
Julio Cruz (Lazio)
Mauro Zarate (Lazio)
Sebastien Frey (Fiorentina)
Stevan Jovetic (Fiorentina)
Hugo Campagnaro (Napoli)
McDonald Mariga (Parma)
Alberto Paloschi (Parma)
Franco Semioli (Sampdoria)

Adam Scime, Goal.com

dreamer75

01-09-2009, 12:02 AM

Lyon defender Fabio Grosso is wanted by Italian clubs, but will he leave the French
According to Sky Sport 24, Juventus and Lyon have found an agreement that will see defender Fabio Grosso transfer to the Italian giants before the end of the transfer window.

The 31-year-old has found his first team place at Lyon in jeopardy since the arrival of Aly Cissokho from Porto and has been linked with a move to Turin ever since.

The French side had been asking for €4 million, while the Bianconeri were bidding €2 million, but it appears they have find a mutually agreeable price for the World Cup winner.

The full-back positions had still been considered a weak area for Juventus, despite their positive transfer campaign this summer. However, the arrival of Grosso should quiet plenty of the critics.

Official announcements from the two clubs are expected shortly to confirm the deal. Grosso transferred to Lyon in 2007 after a brief spell with Inter. His arrival should also see young defender Lorenzo Ariaudo move on loan to Cagliari.

Adam Scime, Goal.com

dreamer75

01-09-2009, 12:04 AM

Juventus star Diego dominated the headlines in the Italian newspapers this morning after his super-show against Roma, and Carlo Garganese believes we have just witnessed the birth of the new Serie A superstar…

Aug 31, 2009 1:45:55 PM

We all knew that Diego was good when Juventus forked out €24.5 million for the Werder Bremen playmaker at the beginning of the summer, but no one knew he was this good.

While the former Santos man had been one of the Bundesliga’s top stars over the last three years, he had yet to play in one of Europe’s big three leagues and had also been offered only limited opportunities at international level.

Any doubts over Diego’s extraordinary pedigree were swept aside yesterday evening when he announced himself as the next possible star of Italian football with an irresistible display against Roma, scoring twice in a 3-1 win at the Stadio Olimpico.

The 24-year-old possesses a rare blend of skill, invention, pace, strength, a low centre of gravity, and deadly finishing – attributes he demonstrated to devastating effect for both of his goals. Concerns that Diego may not be a team player were put to rest as he pressed opponents off the ball, and knew when to dribble and when to pass. The idea that there is no longer a place for trequartistas in modern football also seemed to be dispelled as Diego found space in the hole with consummate ease before attacking the space like another famous Diego once did.

When we consider some of the wild transfer fees dished out these past few months - €93m for Cristiano Ronaldo, €67m for Kaka, €30m for Carlos Tevez – Diego is already looking like the bargain of the summer.

And Juventus are certainly back as a European force. Sporting director Alessio Secco, so long criticised by supporters after a string of disastrous signings, bizarrely seems to be a pantomime hero among these same fans after helping conduct a stellar summer of spending. Felipe Melo, who arrived from Fiorentina, was an all-conquering midfield rock in the Eternal City, even crowning his debut with the third goal. Meanwhile, the returning Fabio Cannavaro looks to be at his fittest since the 2006 World Cup and for the second week in succession was the best defender in the league. Doubts still remain over Juve’s full-back positions, and the signing of Fabio Grosso before tonight’s closure of the transfer window at 19:00 CET would certainly give the Bianconeri every chance of glory at home and abroad.

The Scudetto battle between Juventus and Derby destroyers Inter promises to be fascinating, and one gets the feeling that this race could go all the way to the wire, perhaps even to the final day when intriguingly the Old Lady must go to San Siro to play Milan.

Juventus are joined on the top of the table by Lazio, whom they meet after the international break, as well as Genoa and Sampdoria. While on the topic of internationals, Marcello Lippi yesterday announced his squad for the World Cup qualifiers against Georgia and Bulgaria and, again, Antonio Cassano was missing. ‘Talentino’ was irresistible in Samp’s 3-1 win over Udinese, despite missing a penalty, scoring a trademark curler and delivering a back-heel assist.

Some of the other star performers from Sunday include Napoli’s Fabio Quagliarella, who scored twice on his home debut and hit the crossbar from the halfway line in the victory over Livorno, and the respective matchwinners for Fiorentina, Lazio and Siena – Stevan Jovetic, Julio Cruz and Emanuele Calaio – as well as Serie A’s ‘new Pippo Inzaghi’, Alberto Paloschi.

But the day belonged to Diego – the new star of Italian football.

What are your views on this topic? Is Diego the new star of Serie A?

dreamer75

01-09-2009, 12:06 AM

After watching star signing Diego lead the team to victory on Sunday, Juventus general manager Jean-Claude Blanc expressed his satisfaction in completing such an important deal this summer.

Diego cost the Old Lady €24.5 million from Werder Bremen, a very reasonable price when compared to the big sums splashed out by other clubs in these past few months to sign world class players.

The Bianconeri defeated Roma 3-1 on Sunday night, with the Brazilian player being the main protagonist in the encounter, scoring a fine brace.

"From the timing and amount point of view, it was a perfect operation," the Old Lady's general manager proudly declared to La Gazzetta dello Sport.

"If we had waited just a few more days, everything would have changed - we would have paid much more."

Blanc is referring to the fact that a few days after this transfer was officially announced, Milan and Manchester United respectively sold Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid for high figures, and would therefore have been the favourites to sign up the former Porto man.

Glenn Debattista, Goal.com

dreamer75

01-09-2009, 12:10 AM

A0vqhJeDO1k

LaRiservaCalcio

Cissiboy

01-09-2009, 10:05 AM

Grosso is a Juventus player. 2.5 Million Euro to Lyon, 1.2 to the player..

dreamer75

06-09-2009, 08:44 PM

Grosso is a Juventus player. 2.5 Million Euro to Lyon, 1.2 to the player..

with the completiong of this signing, personally feel that we have completed a successful 'spree' in the transfer mkt :o

dreamer75

06-09-2009, 08:45 PM

Manchester United Boss Alex Ferguson Hails Juventus Ace Diego
The Red Devils gaffer has given a sparkling opinion of Juve's Brazilian star...
Sep 4, 2009 12:41:15 PM

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is all smiles after picking up the first points of the season at home to Blackburn Rovers

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has spoken out in praise of Brazilian ace Diego, believing the Juventus man is likely to reach a higher level plying his trade in Italy.

Ferguson, who is at UEFA headquarters in Nyon for the annual meeting involving top European coaches, is impressed with the Brazilian, and he believes he will succeed with the Bianconeri.

"I like watching him play. He is always there involved in the action. He did well at Werder Bremen and I think he will improve more at Juventus who have a squad full of champions," Ferguson is quoted as saying in Tuttosport.

Milan coach, Leonardo, who has followed Diego's football career closely, claims Brazilians regard him as the next Pele.

"I know Diego well as I saw him grow up with Santos. The Paulista club consider him as the natural heir to Pele," added the Brazilian.

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

dreamer75

06-09-2009, 08:46 PM

Juventus' Paolo De Ceglie Returns To Training Following Brief Injury Scare – Report
The Bianconeri were handed a boost as they prepare for next Saturday’s top of the table clash with Lazio...

Sep 5, 2009 5:47:59 PM

Paolo De Ceglie - Juventus (Grazia Neri)

As Juventus concluded their last training session of the week on Saturday, coach Ciro Ferrara was handed a boost with the news that Paolo De Ceglie is once again at his disposal.

The young Italian full-back had been training alone for the last few days as he underwent a separate programme, but with a week to go until Juventus’ crunch tie with Lazio in the Eternal City; it seems the Bianconeri coach can now consider De Ceglie for action next Saturday.

With a considerable number of personnel away on international duty, the Juventus coach will only have two days together with a complete squad, as the Old Lady look to keep their 100 per cent record intact.

Stefano Federici, Goal.com

dreamer75

06-09-2009, 08:48 PM

Scudetto Is A Race Between Juventus & Inter – Former Roma Boss Carlo Mazzone
The most experienced coach in the Italian football panorama has had his say on the race for the championship.

The 2009/10 Serie A season looks certain to be a highly competitive and open race for the Scudetto, with Juventus and Inter looking as strong as ever, and the likes of Fiorentina, Palermo, Genoa, Sampdoria and Napoli all significantly strengthening their squads over the course of the summer.

In addition to this, there is also Milan and Roma, two clubs that failed to enhance their respective squads over the past couple of months, however two clubs that will always be there or thereabouts, in the race for the championship.

According to the former Giallorossi boss and the most experienced boss to ever coach in the peninsula in Carlo Mazzone though, it is a race between two this term – Juventus and Inter.

“For the Scudetto this season, I expect a head to head battle between Juventus and Inter,” Mazzone explained, as reported by Corriere dello Sport.

“Milan will follow them, as I don’t feel that they will recover from the changes they have made just yet.

“I think the final Champions League place is up for grabs though, as one of seven teams could finish there.

“Fiorentina are my favourites at the moment, but there is Genoa which are very close behind, Sampdoria, the team that could be the revelation of the season, Lazio, Napoli, Roma, and Palermo.”

The Bianconeri currently sit atop of the league table, alongside a handful of others with the maximum six points from two fixtures, whilst the Nerazzurri are two behind with four to their name.

Adrian Del Monte, Goal.com

dreamer75

06-09-2009, 08:50 PM

Juventus’ Amauri Ruled Out Of Italy’s Remaining World Cup Qualifiers – Report
The Brazilian born hitman will not participate in any of his adopted nation’s qualifying matches.

Sep 4, 2009 12:30:05 AM

Amauri’s quest to become a citizen of Italy is finally reaching its end, after the 29-year-old’s fate was hugely impacted by the new immigration laws that came into force on August 8.

Following the announcement, the Brazilian born player was expected to receive his Italian passport on March 3, 2010, as that would be exactly one year to the day that his wife Cynthia received hers; however there is still some hope for the Juventus striker, according to the latest reports.

Corriere dello Sport has suggested that if Amauri is to apply for a citizenship through the Bianconeri before or on August 26, then there is a slight chance that he will be able to receive his citizenship in the latter stages of October.

This would obviously still rule him out of the Azzurri’s last two World Cup qualifiers against the Republic of Ireland (October 10) and Cyprus (October 14), however it would provide him with the opportunity of playing in the nation’s friendly matches in the lead up to the showpiece tournament.

The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) and the Ministry of Interior last are yet to comment on these latest reports, however a response is expected in the coming days.

Adrian Del Monte, Goal.com

dreamer75

06-09-2009, 08:51 PM

Careca: Juventus' Diego Is Like Zico & Roberto Baggio
The former Brazil international has heaped high praise on the Juventus man...

Former Napoli and Brazil striker Careca has compared Juventus ace Diego to Zico and Roberto Baggio.

Careca, who played alongside Diego Maradona at Napoli, believes the Brazilian playmaker can become the new Kaka of Serie A. Careca, who saw Diego grow up at Santos, has told Juve they can expect nothing but greatness from their No.28.

"Diego reminds me of Zico and Baggio. His intelligence is Brazilian, but his capacity to score goals with ease is Italian," Careca told Tuttosport.

"He is very clever and he knows when to dribble the ball and when to make it do the work. His feet are good, and he is he is very dangerous from free kicks.

"I think Diego can fill the hole left in Italian football by Kaka."

The €25 million signing from Werder Bremen scored twice against Roma last week, bolstering an already burgeoning reputation in Serie A.

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

dreamer75

06-09-2009, 08:56 PM

David Trezeguet: I Will Leave Juventus In May
The French hitman has stunned the calcio world as he confirms his intent to part company with the Old Lady

Sep 3, 2009 12:53:23 PM

Juventus striker David Trezeguet has announced he will leave the club at the end of the season.

His decision has come unexpectedly, and just months after he claimed he would stay with the Old Lady for life.

Trezeguet, who was at Vinovo and took part in the launch of the club's new suit range, took the opportunity to inform his employers, and calcio community of his decision.

"I will leave Juventus at the end of the season," Trezeguet told the press.

"I have made a decision with my family and I will leave after 10 years of living in Turin. I want to go back home. I don't know whether it will be France or Argentina."

Despite the antithetical announcement, 'Trezegol' wants to bow out with a trophy to his name.

"I want to leave Juventus as a winner," added the hitman.

"There will be no problems with my contract. I have informed the club."

Trezeguet is the greatest foreign striker in the Bianconeri's history. He is the fifth all-time scorer with 161 goals to his name. He scored his centenary goal in the Champions League against Club Bruges in 2005. His contract is due to expire in 2012.

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

dreamer75

06-09-2009, 08:57 PM

time to start looking for a replacement for trez....

dreamer75

06-09-2009, 08:59 PM

Juventus are back on Ezequiel Lavezzi's trail as they plan early to replace out-going forward David Trezeguet.

Giuseppe Rossi, the €20 million-rated Villarreal striker, is also an alternative.

Lazio's want-away hitman Goran Pandev, who was linked with Juve this summer, is also in the background and Bordeaux's Marouane Chamakh's name has also been thrown into the hat.

dreamer75

06-09-2009, 09:02 PM

Juve have made a string of impressive signings over the summer, including those of Diego, Felipe Melo and Fabio Cannavaro.

Yet, despite the arrival of versatile defender Martin Caceres on loan from Barcelona, the Old Lady’s full back positions were still cited as a weakness.

The arrival of Grosso should help solve this problem and the ex-Palermo and Lyon man will slot in on the left of defence, alongside fellow Italy national team starters Giorgio Chiellini and Cannavaro and in front of Azzurri goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon.

Grosso made 52 appearances for Lyon after arriving at the Stade Gerland in 2007 from Inter. While in France the wing-back won one French Ligue 1 title, one French Cup and one French Super Cup.

Cissiboy

06-09-2009, 10:13 PM

time to start looking for a replacement for trez....

there wont be one like Trezeguet anymore

:sad:

dreamer75

06-09-2009, 10:33 PM

there wont be one like Trezeguet anymore

:sad:

have to find hard for one...

dreamer75

06-09-2009, 10:42 PM

Ferrara is introducing revolutionary new training techniques to keep his side enthusiastic as well as concentrated.

Tuttosport claims today that games between ranks are raised to the level of mini-tournaments, complete with trophy and a photograph of the winning team.

football-italia

Cissiboy

07-09-2009, 01:56 PM

have to find hard for one...

honestly huntelaar..costing so little..would have been a decent substitute..but nowadays I dont see anyone with David's characteristics around..Hopefully in 1 year time..wait and see !

dreamer75

21-09-2009, 01:28 AM

FT Juventus [2 - 0] Livorno

8' [1 - 0] V. Iaquinta

30' [2 - 0] C. Marchisio

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 08:32 PM

Genoa 2-2 Juventus: All Square In Thrilling & Controversial Clash At Marassi

The Bianconeri's 100 per cent record came to an end...
Sep 24, 2009 9:45:23 PM

David Trezeguet will no longer be wearing the famous Bianconeri colours after announcing his decision to leave the club

Juventus' 100 per cent Serie A record came to an end after a thrilling and controversial 2-2 draw with Genoa at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris.

David Trezeguet rescued Juve a point with four minutes remaining after Giandomenico Mesto and Hernan Crespo had overturned Vincenzo Iaquinta's opener, but the Bianconeri also controversially had two goals disallowed for offside, one that was clearly legal.

Juventus had lost top spot to Inter and were eager to take it back with a win, but came into this game with real injury problems as Mohamed Sissoko, Hasan Salihamidzic, Alessandro Del Piero, Fabio Cannavaro, Tiago, and Diego were all out injured.

Felipe Melo returned, while coach Ciro Ferrara switched to a 4-3-3 by dropping Sebastian Giovinco and fielding a three-pronged attack of Mauro Camoranesi, Vincenzo Iaquinta and Amauri.

Genoa were without former Juventino Domenico Criscito, who was suspended, as well as the injured Bosko Jankovic and Ivan Juric. Sergio Floccari was preferred to Hernan Crespo in the trident attack, flanked by Giandomenico Mesto and Giuseppe Sculli.

The home side threatened first as Nicola Legrottaglie had to get his body in the way to block Sculli's dangerous effort.

But it was Juventus who took the lead on five minutes with a clinical finish from Iaquinta. Camoranesi dummied Claudio Marchisio's pass across the edge of the penalty box, and Iaquinta fired home a pinpoint drive into the bottom corner.

Amauri sidestepped his man before shooting straight at Marco Amelia, but Genoa threatened an equaliser on 10 minutes as Omar Milanetto burst past two players and laid the ball off to Mesto, but Fabio Grosso performed a superb sliding block.

Despite this scare Juventus should have doubled their advantage minutes later as Amauri rose completely unmarked in the six yard box from Grosso's free kick but headed over.

Amauri almost managed to get a clean run on goal but the referee pulled him back for a foul on Emiliano Moretti.

The Brazilian-born hitman was being wasteful in front of goal, and just shy of the half-hour mark he headed wide from six yards from a Grosso free kick with a line of team-mates queuing up behind him.

Amauri would pay for this miss, as sixty seconds later Genoa were level. Sculli crossed from the left, and Mesto powered home a brilliant header into the top corner.

The goal fired Juventus up, with Iaquinta and Marchisio letting fly from distance, but the teams would go in level at half time after an exhilarating first half of football.

Genoa made one change at the break as Crespo replaced Floccari, while Juventus remained as so.

Genoa goalscorer Mesto made his second vital contribution of the evening on 48 minutes as he blocked Marchisio's goalbound effort.

Marchisio nutmegged Marco Rossi down the left, before cutting inside and testing Amelia as Juve upped the tempo.

Iaquinta then missed a glorious chance on 53 minutes as Marchisio chipped him through on goal, but the striker delayed and a defender managed to block the ball on the line.

Juventus were completely dominant now, and Iaquinta spurned another fine chance from Camoranesi's cross when he slipped at the final moment. Camoranesi headed over from the following corner.

Genoa coach Gian Piero Gasperini realised his side's problems and switched to a 4-4-1-1 by swapping Sokratis for Francesco Modesto.

This seemed to have a positive impact on the hosts, and Gianluigi Buffon acrobatically tipped over a Sculli piledriver.

There was huge controversy on 73 minutes as Iaquinta thought he had put Juve back ahead when heading home Grosso's free kick, but the goal was incorrectly flagged offside when replays showed that he was level with a Genoa defender.

This proved costly as just seconds later Genoa scored themselves, with Crespo powering home a bullet header from Mesto's cross.

To add to Juve's woes Marchisio limped off injured and was replaced by Giovinco.

Juventus continued to push forward, and incredibly they had a second goal disallowed, this time from Chiellini. Substitute David Trezeguet was adjudged to have been in an offside position, but replays suggested that the decision could have gone either way.

With four minutes remaining Juve finally got their equaliser. A free kick from the left was headed across goal by Chiellini, and Trezeguet couldn't miss from a yard out.

Juventus move back to the top of the table, but they are now level with Inter on 13 points from five games. Genoa are up to joint-fourth.

Anthony Sormani, Goal.com

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 08:32 PM

http://i.media.goal.com/g/55134_news.jpg

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 08:35 PM

http://i.media.goal.com/g/56093_hp.jpg

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 08:38 PM

we r robbed of a win at Genoa ...

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 08:42 PM

Player Ratings: Genoa 2-2 Juventus

JUVENTUS

Buffon - 6: Completely blameless on both of Genoa's goals that flew into the top corner of the net. Aside from this had very little to do all evening.

Grygera - 6: One of Juventus' few weak links tonight, Grygera did not do enough to close down Sculli as he crossed for Mesto's goal.

Legrottaglie - 6: Was generally solid for most of the game, but lost Crespo on Genoa's second goal as he was beaten to the near post.

Chiellini - 7: A rock at the back as the Genoa strikers barely got a sniff all game, but it wasn't Juventus' night as they still conceded twice. Saw a goal disallowed, and provided the assist for Trezeguet's leveller.

Grosso - 7.5: Defensively not perfect, but his set-piece delivery and crossing was world class. Created four clear cut chances with his left boot, one of which was wrongly disallowed.

Marchisio - 8: Magnificent in the centre of midfield. Dominated the game, and provided the pass for Iaquinta's goal. Is developing into a superb player.

Felipe Melo - 6.5: Not the all-conquering Felipe Melo we have seen so far this season, but still a good game. Needs to cut out the unnecessary risks in his own half.

Poulsen - 5.5: Tried his best, but clearly handicaps this Juventus line-up. Too slow in possession and in closing down opponents.

Camoranesi - 7.5: Creatively superb, executing a great dummy for Iaquinta's opener, as well as another wonderful pass to his team-mate in the second half. Genoa had no answer to his attacking forays.

Iaquinta - 8: Has exploded this season, and scored yet again tonight. Should have had a hat-trick as he saw another goal wrongly disallowed, while he also squandered a one-on-one chance.

Amauri - 5: While Juventus did not get the rub of the green, Amauri must accept much of the blame for this draw as he missed two easy chances at 1-0.

Subs

Giovinco - 6: Brought on as Juve searched for an equaliser.

Trezeguet 7: Grabbed a crucial late equaliser to preserve Juve's unbeaten record.

Carlo Garganese, Goal.com

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 08:44 PM

Grosso and Marchisio are superb!!

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 08:45 PM

Ciro Ferrara Furious With Juventus’ Two Disallowed Goals Against Genoa

The Bianconeri boss was not in a good mood after his side’s draw at the Marassi.
Sep 24, 2009 10:30:05 PM

Juventus dropped their first points of the campaign on Thursday night, after managing a 2-2 draw on the road to Genoa.

Despite going ahead after just six minutes, the Bianconeri required a late equaliser from David Trezeguet to restore parity in the contest, and avoid what would have been an undeserved defeat, considering the controversy that took place.

The Old Lady had two goals disallowed for offside, which replays proved not to be the case. Vincenzo Iaquinta had one ruled out on 73 minutes, after being level with the defender, and to make matters worse, the Grifoni scored from a counter attack just seconds later.

“It is clear that there Iaquinta was not offside,” bemoaned the Juve boss Ciro Ferrara to Sky.

“It is disappointing because decisions like this can change games.

“I have seen a Juventus side play very well tonight, one that deserved the victory in my opinion.

“I’m sorry for what has happened, but it’s strange, because we suffered against Livorno last week more than we did tonight.”

Juve will be desperate to make a speedy return to the winner’s list this weekend, when they play host to Bologna at the Stadio Olimpico in Turin.

Adrian Del Monte, Goal.com

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 08:50 PM

We Deserved A Better Result Against Genoa – Juventus ‘Keeper Buffon

The Bianconeri stopper was disappointed with the outcome in his side’s latest fixture.
Sep 24, 2009 10:50:05 PM

Juventus were held to a 2-2 draw by Genoa at the Marassi stadium earlier tonight, ending the Bianconeri’s perfect start to the campaign.

The Old Lady had two goals incorrectly ruled out for offside in the match, leading many, including Gianluigi Buffon, into believing that they deserved a better outcome on the night.

“With exception to the goals they scored, I was rarely involved,” Buffon remarked to the Juventus Channel.

“Besides the goals, I remember saving a shot from outside the box taken by [Giuseppe] Sculli.

“For the rest of the match though, we gave little away against a team like Genoa, and this is our biggest regret tonight.

“However, we have proven that we are a great team yet again.”

Juve host Bologna at the weekend, and if recent results are anything to go by, it could be another quiet night in between the sticks for the goalkeeper.

Adrian Del Monte, Goal.com

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 08:54 PM

Serie A Team Of The Week: Round 5

Goal.com looks at the best performing players from the fifth round of the Serie A calendar, and Fiorentina are represented by three players after their convincing 2-0 win over Sampdoria...

Sep 25, 2009 10:00:40 AM

BEST XI

Formation: 3-4-1-2

Goalkeeper

Sebastien Frey (Fiorentina): The Frenchman was in fantastic form as he stopped Giampaolo Pazzini, Antonio Cassano and Daniele Mannini with miraculous saves to give Fiorentina a much needed, confidence-boosting win.

Defence

Maicon (Inter): The Brazilian was immense as he once again proved he is arguably the best right-back in the world. Relentless, he setup Diego Milito’s goal on five minutes to kill off the match when the score was already 1-0. However, that did not stop him from being an influence for the entire 90 minutes.

Lucio (Inter): The Brazilian captain kept the likes of Fabio Quagliarella and Ezequiel Lavezzi quiet for long periods of the match. He capped his performance off with his first goal in a Nerazzurri shirt.

Alessandro Nesta (Milan): The defender is yet again in our Team of the Week. With the Rossoneri down to ten men he remained a rock at the back, snuffing out a number of Udinese’s attacks. He nearly equalised when his effort hit the crossbar. He certainly did not deserve to be on the losing side.

Midfield

Marco Marchionni (Fiorentina): Excellent showing down the right, from where he constantly pushed forward and put in a fantastic cross, finding Stevan Jovetic for the opener.

McDonald Mariga (Parma): He was like a perfect barrier in front of the defence, recovering many loose balls and chasing down Lazio’s attacking forays. The Kenya international has both quantity and quality.

Young McDonald | An energetic performance

Claudio Marchisio (Juventus): Back from the weekend as well, he was the best on the field in a tightly contested game at the Marassi. He was dominant in the midfield – limiting the usually impressive Alberto Zapater and also contributing going forward, like he did on the first Juventus goal. Definitely bound for the World Cup in South Africa.

Damiano Zenoni (Parma): Like Mariga, he was one of the main reasons the Gialloblu walked away with three points from the Stadio Olimpico, setting up Valeri Bojinov with an inch perfect cross for the striker to volley home.

Attack

Francesco Totti (Roma): ‘Er Pupone’ is yet another who makes a consecutive appearance in our Best XI. His brilliant moves at the Stadio Renzo Barbera helped his side gain a point. He assisted the opener with a fantastic backheel through-ball and fired home a crucial penalty near the end when the points were on the line.

Nerves Of Steel | Totti was spot on

Fabrizio Miccoli (Palermo): The diminutive striker was involved in all three of his side’s goals, with his own being the pick of the bunch, scoring from an acute angle. One of the most exciting players in Serie A.

Stevan Jovetic (Fiorentina): Adrian Mutu’s absences are becoming less of a problem as the teenager continues to blossom. He was a threat all match long and is running into the right spaces, as a striker should.

Frey

Maicon - Lucio - Nesta

Marchionni - Mariga - Marchisio - Zenoni

Totti

Miccoli - Jovetic

Honourable Mention

Nene (Cagliari)
Gaby Mudingayi (Bologna)
Giacomo Tedesco (Bologna)
Marco Di Vaio (Bologna)
Vincenzo Iaquinta (Juventus)
Giandomenico Mesto (Genoa)
Hernan Crespo (Genoa)
Matteo Brighi (Roma)
Diego Milito (Inter)
Samuel Eto'o (Inter)
Valeri Bojinov (Parma)
Nicola Amoruso (Parma)
Gaetano D’Agostino (Udinese)
Antonio Di Natale (Udinese)

Adam Scime, Goal.com

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 08:56 PM

Sebastian Giovinco Staying At Juventus - Alessio Secco

The Bianconeri's director has denied that the 'atomic ant' will be leaving on loan in January to find more space elsewhere...
Sep 25, 2009 6:42:17 AM

Juventus sporting director Alessio Secco has rebuffed claims that gifted young midfielder Sebastian Giovinco is set to leave the club on loan in January in order to find a team who will play him more regularly.

Despite being overlooked in favour of Mauro Camoranesi in last nights 2-2 draw against Genoa, Secco remains convinced that Giovinco will have many opportunities with the Bianconeri and that he will prove to be an important player for the team.

"Giovinco on loan in January? Absolutely not," affirmed the Old Lady's director to Mediaset.

"The season has just started and we're satisfied with Giovinco.

"His main competitor's name is Diego and it's not easy to take his place, but the player will have the opportunity to prove his worth," he snapped.

Secco also expressed his satisfaction at midfielder Felipe Melo's contribution to the team so far, playing in front of the defence.

"We signed him to play him in that position and we're more than satisfied of his performances," he confirmed.

Juventus will be back in action on Sunday when they host Bologna in the sixth matchday of Serie A.

Glenn Debattista, Goal.com

Is the Old Lady back? Check out the October issue of Goal.com Magazine for an exclusive in-depth look at the new Juventus.

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 10:05 PM

Calcio Debate: Juventus-Inter Scudetto Race Could Go To The Final Day Of The Season
Last night’s big clash at Marassi may have ended in a thrilling and controversial 2-2 draw, but Carlo Garganese saw a great Juventus side ready to fight tooth and nail for Inter’s Scudetto…

Sep 25, 2009 12:30:02 PM

All the talk in the Italian newspapers this morning has centred around Massimiliano Saccani’s Stadio Ferraris horror-show. The referee wrongly disallowed a Vincenzo Iaquinta header at 1-1 just prior to Genoa scoring their second goal, before then chalking off another more questionable Bianconeri strike from Giorgio Chiellini. The consensus is that Saccani cost Juventus their 100 per cent record, and thus ensured that the Turin-giants are now level on points at the top with Inter.

While the majority of Juventini feel they were robbed by a man with a Sac (sorry, had to get that out of the way), what hasn’t been highlighted so luminously is that there was an exceptional Juventus on show last night, one that proved that they are on the same level as champions and Scudetto favourites Inter.

It can be argued that this was the Bianconeri’s best performance of the season so far, only that luck was not on their side. Ciro Ferrara’s men travelled to perhaps the third strongest team in Italy on current form and played them off the park for long stretches. Juve created numerous clear-cut chances, with Amauri missing two headed sitters from six yards, and Iaquinta squandering a one-on-one and slipping while all alone at the back post.

Then, of course, there were the two disallowed goals. The second from Giorgio Chiellini was debatable depending on the current interpretation of the offside law, which I have given up trying to follow. The first from Iaquinta at 1-1 with 16 minutes to go was clearly legitimate, and to add insult to injury Genoa went straight down the other end seconds later to take the lead through substitute Hernan Crespo.

"Why was my goal disallowed?"

The hosts forced Gianluigi Buffon into just one save all night, a long-range effort from Giuseppe Sculli midway through the second half, and scored with their only two openings of the game – which happened to be unstoppable world class headers into the top corner.

As Ferrara noted, “I saw a Juventus that played very well. We deserved the victory.

“Even though the result is a little negative, it makes us understand that we're on the right track.”

Buffon and Felipe Melo echoed their coach’s thoughts.

“We gave little away against a team like Genoa, and this is our biggest regret. However, we have proven that we are a great team yet again,” said the goalkeeper.

"I am very angry, because we let two points slip away that we deserved to have. We did well, and with this squad, we can do great things," added the Brazilian hardman.

Ferrara has certainly brought a real mental toughness to this side. Last season under Claudio Ranieri, Juve wouldn’t have recovered from the psychological blow of falling behind just seconds after having a good goal disallowed. Ferrara was described by one Italian journalist earlier this week as “part-Marcello Lippi, part-Fabio Capello” – you cannot receive a greater compliment than that.

Ferrara learned from Lippi

With Inter having dominated Italian football so emphatically since the Calciopoli crisis, this season will be the first where another club is strong enough to knock them off their Scudetto perch.

Weighing up the strengths and weaknesses of Inter and Juventus shows how little there is to separate the two clubs. Julio Cesar and Buffon are the two best goalkeepers in the world, Inter have a stronger and deeper defence, while Juventus possess a stronger and deeper midfield. Inter’s attack is more clinical, but Juve’s is more flexible. Jose Mourinho may be the more experienced coach, but Ferrara has started imperiously and, if first impressions are to go by, looks like the real deal both tactically and mentally.

The race to the line between the Nerazzurri and the Bianconeri promises to be neck-and-neck – Juventus will just be hoping that Massimiliano Saccani isn’t in charge of judging the photo finish.

What are your views on this topic? Will the Scudetto race go all the way to the final day? Who are favourites for the Scudetto? Goal.com wants to know what YOU think…

Carlo Garganese, Goal.com

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 10:06 PM

Juventus Ace Diego To Make Comeback From Injury Against Bologna - Report

Diego is back for Juve, but he is not expected to feature prominently against the Rossoblu this weekend...

Sep 25, 2009 12:01:32 PM

Juventus ace Diego is set to make his return to action this weekend when Bologna come to town.

The Brazilian has been out since pulling a muscle during the 2-0 win against Lazio in week three.

He has missed three games - Girondins de Bordeaux, Livorno and Genoa - but he is now available for selection.

Diego trained without any problems at Vinovo this morning and Tuttosport claims he is in line to feature this weekend.

It is said the former Werder Bremen man will only play a minor role against Bologna, with Ferrara preferring to keep him fresh for the tricky away tie against Bayern Munich next week in the Champions League.

However, Alessandro Del Piero is still out with his left leg injury. He is unlikely to be ready in time for the Rossoblu clash.

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

dreamer75

25-09-2009, 10:08 PM

We are against Bologna this wwekend!

dreamer75

27-09-2009, 05:24 PM

4 hrs to Bologna game....

dreamer75

27-09-2009, 07:55 PM

Serie A Preview: Juventus - Bologna

Expect to see wholesale changes on Sunday afternoon as Juventus welcome Bologna...
Sep 26, 2009 11:53:43 AM

Kick Off: Sunday September 27, 15:00CET, Olimpico, Turin

Juventus Hungry For More Points

Having drawn 2-2 against Genoa on Thursday, Juve will be hoping for more points to add to their Serie A total thus far and stay in touch with Inter.

Ciro Ferrara's men underlined their intent for the campaign further
against a tricky Grifoni side, having come back from behind to steal a point. With four games in ten days for the home side, Bologna will offer them a chance to take a bit of a breather; but don't expect too much pressure to be taken off the gas, though, as they cannot afford to lose ground on their Scudetto rivals.

Diego is likely to make his return to action, following the injury he sustained against Lazio back in week three. The Brazilian's magic will be needed to unlock a Rossoblu defence that has conceded less goals than Roma and Milan. The visitors have only shipped four goals in total, good going for a side that were favourites to go down at the start of the season.

The Bianconeri will be confident heading into the game. They boast a good record at home to Bologna. Last season's fixture ended with a 4-1 win for the Old Lady. Massimo Mutarelli gave his side the lead before a major fightback followed from the home side. Hasan Salihamidzic, Sebastian Giovinco and a double from Alessandro Del Piero sealed the win. Those three still ply their trade in Turin, but they are unlikely to feature in this tie. With Champions League duties looming, the Bianconeri will want to get this one out of the way quickly.

Bologna Back To Winning Ways

Giuseppe Papadopulo's men recorded their first win at their fifth attempt in midweek when they beat relegation struggler's Livorno 2-0. Marco Di Vaio and Daniele Portanova grabbed their first goals of the season to lift the Emiliani away from the drop zone. Having drawn two and lost twice on the bounce before their win against the Amaranto, Bologna will be hoping to make it two wins from as many games against Juventus.

The Rossoblu travel to the Olimpico to meet an inform Juve side who will have their minds on next week's clash in the Champions League against Bayern Munich. With that in mind, Papdopulo will be hoping to take full advantage and keep the confident mood around the Emilia-Romagna-based town going with diplomacy rather than force.

However, their record away from home this term is less than perfect. Two games have ended in a defeat, against Milan in week four and a goalless draw with Bari in round two. Furthermore, Bologna have not beat Juventus in the league in Turin for almost 30 years. Their last win in Piedmont was on October 5 1980. The Emiliani won 1-0. And they did get a draw here in 2002. Giuseppe Signori's penalty was cancelled out by Mark Iuliano with four minutes to go.

Papadopulo is likely to settle a point from this one, but with the Bianconeri focussed on Wednesday, the away side will fancy their chances.

Form Guide

Juventus

September 23 v Genoa (A) DREW 2-2 (Serie A)

September 19 v Livorno (H) - WON 2-0 (Serie A)

September 15 v Bordeaux (H) - DREW 1-1 (Champions League)

September 12 v Lazio (A) - WON 0-2 (Serie A)

August 30 v Roma (A) - WON 1-3 (Serie A)

Bologna

September 23 v Livorno (H) WON 2-0 (Serie A)

September 20 v AC Milan (A) LOST 1-0 (Serie A)

September 13 v Chievo Verona (H) – LOST 2-0 (Serie A)

August 29 v Bari (A) – DREW 0-0 (Serie A)

August 22 v Fiorentina (H) – DREW 1-1 (Serie A)

Team News

Juventus

Ciro Ferrara changed it up to a 4-4-2 against Genoa, but with Diego avaliable he is likely to use a 4-3-1-2 formation in this game. Mohamed Sissoko, Hasan Salihamidzic, Fabio Cannavaro and Tiago are all long-term absentees. Although David Trezeguet managed to score the equaliser in Genoa, Vincenzo Iaquinta and Amauri will probably keep their places up front. Alessandro Del Piero is also back in contention, after recovering from injury.

Probable Starting XI 4-3-1-2: Buffon; Grygera; Legrottaglie, Chiellini, Grosso; Camoranesi, Melo, Marchisio; Diego; Iaquinta, Amauri.

Bologna

Massimo Mutarelli will not be on hand to score like he did here last term. The former Lazio man has been ruled out for at least four months after tearing a cruciate ligament against Livorno. He has had surgery and is now on the rehabilitation list. Davide Bombardini and Vangelis Moras are both ruled out. There are no suspensions. Former Juventus strikers Marcelo Zalayeta and Di Vaio are likely to start.

Probable Starting XI 4-4-2: Viviano, Raggi, Portanova, Britos, Lanna; Vigiani, Mingazzini, Mudingayi, Valiani; Di Vaio, Zalayeta.

Players To Watch

Diego (Juventus)

The Brazilian has missed three games since his injury and he is itching to get back into action. He has recovered and wants to continue where he left off following a magnificent start to the campaign. Watch out for his smooth runs and fine finishing.

Marco Di Vaio (Bologna)

The former Bianconeri man scored 24 goals last season. It's a different story this time, though, as he has bagged just one in five games. The Italian will be hoping to add more against his old club. Juve defenders will need to watch for his all-round clever box play.

Prediction

Bologna will put up a fight, but expect Juve's qualities to shine through, despite the fact that Ferrara is expected to rest several players ahead of the Champions League tie. The points will stay in Turin. Despite the confidence of the away team, Ferrara will have told his players that anything less than a win is nacceptable, as he reconciles domestic requirements with squad contraints.

Juventus 3-0 Bologna

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

dreamer75

27-09-2009, 07:55 PM

http://i.media.goal.com/g/56723_news.jpg

dreamer75

27-09-2009, 07:57 PM

Juventus Must Erase The Memory Of Genoa Match By Beating Bologna - Ciro Ferrara

The rookie coach is still angry with the two disallowed goals his side suffered against the Grifoni...

Sep 26, 2009 1:38:50 PM

Juventus secured a draw on Thursday night against Genoa, but coach Ciro Ferrara is still unhappy that the Bianconeri couldn't take all three points.

"We are angry, which is a good sign," Ferrara told Datasport.

"We want to forget about that night. We were very disappointed with the result but this must be transformed into positive energy tomorrow.

"The episodes [disallowed goals] were very difficult to judge, but now we must think about Bologna. There are no easy games and the tie with Bologna is very important.

"The best way to prepare ourselves for the [Champions League] game against Bayern Munich will be to beat Bologna."

Ferrara added that Diego had recovered from his injury, but he will wait until the last minute before deciding if he would be risked. Fabio Cannavaro will be rested.

Anthony Wright, Goal.com

dreamer75

27-09-2009, 07:58 PM

http://i.media.goal.com/g/56395_news.jpg

dreamer75

27-09-2009, 07:59 PM

Juventus Cannot Win The Champions League - Lothar Matthaus

According to the former Germany star, the trophy will be going to one of the Spanish giants this season...

Sep 26, 2009 8:47:29 AM

Former Inter and Bayern Munich midfielder Lothar Matthaus has shot down Juventus' chances of winning the Champions League.

The Bianconeri travel to Germany to face Matthaus' old side on Wednesday. However, the 48-year-old doesn't feel the Old Lady are ready to win Europe's premier competition this year.

"Juventus don't have the team to win the Champions League, but they could get to the semi-finals," Matthaus told La Stampa.

"I think the game against Bayern will end in a draw. I will be supporting the German side. The result is not important, but finishing first or second in the group will be."

"As for the winners, I think Barcelona or Real Madrid."

Matthaus still follows Calcio, and he believes the Scudetto race will be between the Nerazzurri and Juve.

"The Scudetto? That will be between Inter and Juventus," concluded the German.

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

dreamer75

27-09-2009, 08:00 PM

Felipe Melo: Juventus Are Desperate For Silverware

The Brazilian says the Bianconeri are "foaming at the mouth" after three trophy-less seasons.
Sep 27, 2009 11:21:05 AM

Juventus midfield star Felipe Melo has fired a warning shot to the entire football world, claiming that the Old Lady are desperate to return to winning ways this season after rising from the ashes of Calciopoli.

“We are convinced we can target both the Serie A and the Champions League,” he told Calcio Italia.

“Here I have found people with foam at the mouth after three winless years and they are ready for anything to bring home at least a trophy.”

Melo has made an immediate impact in Turin following his big-money switch from Serie A rivals Fiorentina last summer.

The 26-year-old is expected to feature from the start this afternoon along with compatriot Diego, who has shaken off a thigh injury, as Juve take on Bologna at the Olimpico with the objective of regaining top spot on the table from Sampdoria, who stunned Inter 1-0 Saturday evening to take provisional pole position.

Vince Masiello, Goal.com

dreamer75

27-09-2009, 08:01 PM

http://i.media.goal.com/g/54977_news.jpg

dreamer75

28-09-2009, 07:18 AM

FT Juventus [1 - 1] Bologna

24' [1 - 0] D. Trezeguet

90' [1 - 1] M.B. Adailton

dreamer75

28-09-2009, 07:20 AM

Juventus 1-1 Bologna: Injury Time Martins Adailton Strike Earns Bologna Shock Point

The Old Lady will be kicking themselves...
Sep 27, 2009 4:00:27 PM

A last minute goal from substitute Martins Adailton earned Bologna a shock 1-1 draw against Juventus at the Stadio Olimpico in Turin, cancelling out David Trezeguet's first half opener.

The Bianconeri came into this game with injury problems as Momo Sissoko, Fabio Cannavaro and Tiago were out injured. Diego and Alessandro Del Piero were back - the latter starting from the bench, and the Brazilian playing as trequartista behind Amauri and David Trezeguet. Fabio Grosso was rested, meaning a recall for Cristian Molinaro.

Bologna had a few selection issues too as Davide Bombardini, Vangelis Moras and long-term absentee Massimo Mutarelli were missing. Ex-Juventus strikers Marco Di Vaio and Marcelo Zalayeta led the attack.

Juventus attacked from the start, and Claudio Marchisio tested Emiliano Viviano from long-range. On 12 minutes, Amauri found himself some space on the left side of the area, but Viviano got down smartly.

The first big chance of the game arrived to Trezeguet, who was released through on goal by Mauro Camoranesi. The Frenchman powered in a goalbound volley, but Viviano did brilliantly to turn the ball around the post. From the following corner, Nicola Legrottaglie headed wide. The same defender also nodded over moments later from another corner.

The chances continued to come, and on 17 minutes Trezeguet was again profligate as he swept the ball wide from six yards out from Jonathan Zebina's near post cross.

On 24 minutes, the deadlock was finally broken and the two Frenchmen were again involved. Zebina burst past three players into the box, and when his fierce drive was saved by Viviano, Trezeguet was on hand to turn in the rebound.

Bologna tried to react with two Di Vaio efforts, but Diego missed a fine chance to double Juventus' lead as he was closed down by Miguel Britos after Amauri's through pass.

The visitors had a good spell around the half-hour mark, and Andrea Raggi perhaps should have done better as he sliced wide when completely unmarked at the back post.

Bologna had the ball in the back of the net in first half injury time, as Raggi pressured Giorgio Chiellini into putting the ball into his own net, but the goal was correctly disallowed for offside.

Into the second half, and Juventus registered the first effort as Amauri headed over at the back post. Down the other end, Diego swung his left foot at a loose ball, but he didn't connect properly.

On 54 minutes Diego wasted his second fine opening of the afternoon as a poor touch following a flowing counter-attack allowed the Bologna defence to close him down.

That was to be Diego's last significant contribution as just shy of the hour mark the tiring Brazilian was replaced by Sebastian Giovinco.

Soon after the impressive Viviano made another save as he beat away a powerful drive from Felipe Melo.

On 63 minutes Bologna missed two golden chances to equalise. First a quick free kick from Roberto Guana put Di Vaio clean though on goal, but the veteran fired wide. Minutes later Di Vaio again found himself with the goal at his mercy, but after beating Buffon he was denied by a miraculous goal-line clearance by Chiellini.

Juventus were living very dangerously. Buffon saved excellently from substitute Giacomo Tedesco, and from the follow-up another sub Pablo Osvaldo lashed over.

Camoranesi tried to offer some respite as he blazed high over the bar from 30 yards, but Bologna again went close as Guana fired inches wide of the post.

With seven minutes remaining the nervous crowd was lifted as Del Piero was brought on for his first appearance of the season. The Golden Boy almost immediately set up a goal, but Camoranesi headed against the post from six yards.

Juventus looked set to hold out, but in the last minute of injury time Bologna found an equaliser. Molinaro left substitute Adailton completely free at the back post, and the Brazilian steered Tedesco's cross into the net.

Anthony Sormani, Goal.com

dreamer75

28-09-2009, 07:21 AM

Player Ratings: Juventus 1-1 Bologna

Buffon - 6: Completely blameless on Adailton's equaliser, Buffon made one fine save from Tedesco.

Zebina - 7.5: Excellent game by the Frenchman, who could prove to be Juventus' best right back option this season if he stays fit. Provided the assist for Trezeguet's goal, and was very penetrative down his side.

Legrottaglie - 6.5: Coped well with Zalayeta aerially, but was a little slow on the floor on occasions.

Chiellini - 7: Powerful display, Chiellini executed one miraculous clearance off the line from Di Vaio.

Molinaro - 4: Disastrous error at the end of the game as he lost Adailton, who scored to cost Juve two points. Should not be allowed anywhere near this Bianconeri team. Risked conceding two penalties too.

Marchisio - 6.5: Energetic in the middle-of-the-park, but not the same dominant Marchisio from Genoa in midweek.

Felipe Melo - 7: Impressive in midfield once again, Felipe Melo has real personality and heart - he looked furious at the end of the game.

Camoranesi - 7: In great form at the moment. Camoranesi was unplayable in the first half. Tired a bit towards the end and perhaps should have closed the game when he hit the post. Loses marks for giving the ball back to Bologna before the equaliser.

Diego - 6: Didn't seem 100 per cent ready, which contributed to him wasting two good openings. Substituted on the hour for Giovinco.

Trezeguet- 7: Missed two excellent chances, but did manage to score - his third of the season. This can only be good news for player and club.

Amauri - 5: Is going through a very difficult moment, and cut a frustrated figure today. Much of Juventus' problems in the second half stemmed from Amauri failing to hold up the ball.

Subs

Giovinco - 6: A few bright moments, but the tactical situation of the game didn't suit him.

Caceres - 5.5: The cross for Adailton's goal came from his side.

Del Piero - N/A

dreamer75

28-09-2009, 07:25 AM

We Can Only Blame Ourselves - Juventus Defender Legrottaglie

Juventus defender Nicola Legrottaglie talked about today's draw against Bologna.
Sep 27, 2009 4:38:19 PM
\
After the 1-1 draw at home against Bologna, Juventus defender Nicola Legrottaglie was left extremely frustrated that his side gave away two points right at the death.

"Something happened which shouldn't have happened," he said to Sky. "we lost concentration, and lost a stupid ball. In Serie A it's like that, they don't forgive you, in Serie B or elsewhere perhaps they make mistakes in front of goal, in Serie A there are strong footballers and every ball you lose is a goal.

"Today we can only blame ourselves, we held on well also in the second half, we lost two points in a stupid way.

"The problem was that today we suffered more than usual after opening the score. In the second half we controlled the match well, playing well, but at the last minute we made this mistake which cost us two points. Now let's think about the Champions League match on Wednesday."

On the return of Diego from injury, the defender said: "He was out for two weeks, it's comprehensible. Now we all wait for everyone to recover our best form, then we'll all restart together, with a united group, and continue. We must not be discouraged for a negative result.

"A great team is one which when it makes a misstep, immediately recovers and we have to show this on Wednesday in Munich and Sunday in Palermo."

Danilo Pochini, Goal.com

dreamer75

28-09-2009, 07:26 AM

Juventus Gifted Far Too Much Space Against Bologna – Ciro Ferrara

The Bianconeri coach took the blame after his side failed to take their place back at the top of Serie A...
Sep 27, 2009 4:57:05 PM

his Juventus side concede a late equaliser and relinquish the chance to move above Sampdoria at the top of the standings, Ciro Ferrara took the blame for some tactical decisions that may have influenced the outcome of the game.

“We were rather amateur in the manner in which we gifted space to the opposition,” Ferrara declared to Rai.

“I introduced certain players that had been out of action recently. It might have been a mistake to try and re-integrate them all together.

“We must try and move the ball around better when we are in possession. The team also needs to be less frenetic at times and I take full responsibility for the outcome this afternoon.”

Juventus currently sit just one point off surprise leaders Sampdoria but will be ruing the missed chance to stretch away from Inter who suffered a 1-0 defeat on Saturday evening.

Stefano Federici, Goal.com

excalibur324

28-09-2009, 11:33 PM

3 successive draws.. bordeaux genoa and bologna.. hope can secure a postive result against bayern.. who lost in the weekend against arch rival hamburg.

Cissiboy

29-09-2009, 09:33 AM

3 successive draws bcos of the absence of Diego or like in the last one against Bologna his fitness ard 60% and the mistake by Ciro to play 4-3-1-2 with Giovinco and Camoranesi and without Cannavaro. Against Bologna with Iaquinta we would have won 3-0 first half, but of course..hypothetically speaking..

dreamer75

29-09-2009, 09:50 PM

Big CL match coming up!!

Its the game against Bayern Munich!

dreamer75

29-09-2009, 09:51 PM

Will The Experience Of Louis Van Gaal Or Young Pretender Ciro Ferrara Triumph?

As the two European giants prepare for their Champions League tie, Goal.com looks at the two coaches on the touchline…

Sep 29, 2009 2:12:02 PM

When Bayern Munich and Juventus lock horns on Wednesday evening in arguably this week’s most exciting clash, Louis van Gaal and Ciro Ferrara will match wits against each other for the first time as coaches. The two have previously met in 1996 when van Gaal was coach of Ajax. The Dutch side had made it to the Champions League final for the second year running, but were defeated on penalties by Juventus. The scorer of the first penalty? Ciro Ferrara.

It was a heart-breaking moment for Van Gaal, who was looking to win back-to-back Champions League titles with Ajax as Stefan Kovacs had done in the early 1970s. The previous year, his side, including the likes of the De Boer brothers and Jari Litmanen, had beaten AC Milan through a late Patrick Kluivert goal to add the Champions League trophy to their league title.

The 1995 Champions League was the pinnacle of Van Gaal’s success with the Godenzonen, who also won three league titles, one UEFA Cup, one Dutch Cup and one UEFA Super Cup under his tenure.

However, his success in Holland has not always been replicated elsewhere. Although he won successive league titles with Barcelona, his persona did not go down well either with the Blaugrana fans or the Spanish press. In addition, their record in Europe was distinctly poor as they failed to progress from the first group stage in both 1997-98 and 1998-99.

Van Gaal’s spell in charge of the Dutch national team was also nothing short of a disaster as they failed to qualify for the 2002 World Cup. His time with AZ Alkmaar also threatened to be similarly disappointing. Van Gaal blamed all and sundry for his side’s failings as they finished 11th in 2007-08 and dropped out of the Dutch Cup and UEFA Cup early on. Despite this, he was persuaded to stay on by the players for the following season and the rest, as they say, is history. AZ went on to win the title for only the second time in their history and the coach’s excuses from the previous season were forgotten.

On being appointed Bayern Munich manager earlier this year, Van Gaal told Bild that both he and Bayern were “self-confident, arrogant and dominant” – a far cry from the more modest personalities of the next generation of coaches such as Ferrara or Pep Guardiola. The tactician has even revealed that his daughters must address him as formally as his players do in order that they respect him.

Formidable Ferrara - Ciro directs his troops

In the other dugout is Ciro Ferrara. The Juventus coach is only just starting out on his coaching adventure, but has already shown a character that is far removed from Van Gaal’s. Italy coach Marcello Lippi and Bianconeri full-back Fabio Grosso have been among those to praise the young tactician’s approach to the game, while the former Juventus and Napoli defender has always been relaxed and affable in his press conferences.

Perhaps this is youthful inexperience. Ferrara’s frustrations were clear after the Old Lady were held to a draw by Genoa in midweek before his side conceded a last minute equaliser at home to Bologna. Juventus have won just one of their last four fixtures – hardly ideal form before they face Bayern Munich, Palermo and Fiorentina.

The quality that Ferrara has at his disposal is undoubted. Diego and Felipe Melo were acquired at great cost over the summer, while the defensive experience that he and Fabio Cannavaro have under their belts will be a great asset to the younger generation.

Where do Juventus go from here? More and more clubs, such as Milan, are looking to ‘do a Barcelona’ and appoint a former player to guide them to glory. While Guardiola achieved unprecedented success with the Blaugrana, serious questions are being raised over Leonardo’s abilities at the Rossoneri. Is Ferrara going to be another Guardiola and wrestle the Scudetto off Inter as well as challenge in Europe, or should the Bianconeri hierarchy have hired a brash but proven coach like Van Gaal?

Of course, Wednesday night’s encounter is more than just a clash of coaching personalities. However, we will also learn much about Ferrara’s tact and mentality when he comes up against the wily old Van Gaal. “Fortunately we have Juventus on Wednesday, when we can start winning again,” the Bayern coach recently stated. Time will tell.

Anthony Wright, Goal.com

dreamer75

29-09-2009, 09:51 PM

http://www.goal.com/images/56395_hp.jpg

dreamer75

29-09-2009, 09:52 PM

Juventus Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon: Bayern Munich Will Be Tough, But We Can Win

The Italian number one is ready to help in the fight for points against Bayern...

Sep 29, 2009 1:33:09 PM

Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is hoping his side emerge with a strong result against Bayern Munich, but he is well aware that an upturn in fortunes will require a stable and cautious performance.

The Bianconeri are hoping to build and increase productivity on the pitch compared to recent results. Buffon has highlighted Bayern's main threats, but he appeared confident as he boarded the plane to Germany.

"It will be a difficult game for us, just like every game away from home in the Champions League," Buffon told Tuttosport.

"However, we will be playing them on an equal level.

"Bayern? The strength of their players, the history of the club creates fear. They have several players who are all great technically and have high European experiences."

Buffon is eager to place the 1-1 draw against Bologna into the hand of history, hoping for urgent and concerted action in the Allianz Arena.

"We want to do well and it's normal for the players to want to react positively after the draw against Bologna," added the goalkeeper.

"Of course, we hope for three points in Munich, but it's not as easy as people make it out to be."

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

dreamer75

29-09-2009, 09:57 PM

http://i.media.goal.com/g/52374_news.jpg

Official Serie A ball 2009/10 (Grazia Neri)

dreamer75

29-09-2009, 09:59 PM

Bayern Munich Coach Louis van Gaal: Juventus Are One Of The Best Teams In Europe

Despite playing one of European football's strongest sides, Bayern's coach believes his team can bounce back from a frustrating weekend...

Sep 29, 2009 12:11:12 PM

German powerhouse Bayern Munich host Juventus on Wednesday evening, and home coach Louis van Gaal is looking forward to the highly-anticipated match.

"Juventus are very good," Van Gaal stated on the club's official website. "They’re on form, although they only drew at the weekend. They’re up there at the top of their table. They’re one of the best teams in Europe.

"A meeting with Juventus wouldn’t be special normally. I have to prepare the team beforehand, but I do it the same way no matter the opponents. But I don’t have particularly happy memories of Juve. When I coached Ajax Amsterdam, we lost to them in the Champions League final on penalties."

The Dutch manager also spoke about the influence of Bayern's domestic loss against HSV on the upcoming Champions League clash.

"Defeats always have a negative influence," he confirmed. "We’d won five games in a row and our confidence had grown. We thought we’d be level with [league leaders] Hamburg by now, but instead, we’re six points behind. But life goes on, and fortunately we have Juventus on Wednesday, when we can start winning again."

Stefan Coerts, Goal.com

dreamer75

29-09-2009, 10:02 PM

Calcio Debate: The Problems Of Juventus, Inter & Milan Revealed

The ‘Big Three’ all slipped up at the weekend in matches that highlighted their weaknesses. Carlo Garganese explores the problems that Juve, Inter & Milan need to fix…

Sep 28, 2009 4:00:41 PM

An American author who is not famous enough to warrant quoting her name once said that “success is achieved by developing our strengths, not by eliminating our weaknesses”. In the world of football this is not strictly true, and it is clear that Juventus, Inter, and to a much greater extent Milan, have issues that need addressing if 2009/10 is to be a successful season.

At the weekend, the trio were all hugely disappointing as Inter lost at Sampdoria while Juventus and Milan drew with minnows Bologna and Bari respectively. What is more worrying is that neither of the three supergiants deserved to win their matches, even if the Nerazzurri perhaps merited a point in Genoa.

Below are the problems that Juve, Inter and Milan need to treat…

Juventus - Defence

Somewhat surprisingly, Juventus currently have the joint-best defensive record in Serie A after six matches played with only four goals conceded. Don’t let this fool you, though, as in reality the Bianconeri backline has been extremely vulnerable. Were it not for the repeated heroics of goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, Juve would have conceded more than double this total of goals.

Part of the problem could be the fact that up to three of the first-choice back four were signed this summer, and it may take time for them to acclimatise, not so much to each other due to the Italy national team connection, but, to the team and system as a whole.

Buffon has saved Juve this season

The key issue with the defence is the lack of depth. Against Chievo, Roma and Lazio, coach Ciro Ferrara was able to select his star stoppers – Fabio Cannavaro, Giorgio Chiellini (and Fabio Grosso after he arrived from Lyon) - and Juventus looked mean at the back, conceding just one goal. Since then Cannavaro has been out injured, and in the subsequent clashes against Livorno, Genoa and Bologna – particularly the former and the latter – the backline has been opened up far too easily.

To put it simply, Juventus need their three star components to play together at all times. One weak link is sustainable – Barcelona showed that last season with Eric Abidal – but two or more can be disastrous. It also cannot be underestimated just how important a fit and firing Cannavaro is. The 36-year-old organises the defence, unlike Chiellini and Nicola Legrottaglie who are more reactive than proactive.

Finally, Cristian Molinaro must never step foot on the football pitch ever again.

dreamer75

01-10-2009, 09:57 AM

Bayern Munich 0 - 0 Juventus

Boi_racer

01-10-2009, 10:32 PM

I saw Diego being taken off during the match, was he injured ?

Cissiboy

02-10-2009, 11:07 AM

I saw Diego being taken off during the match, was he injured ?

No just normal sub

Alex out 40 days for muscle injury

Tiago (who cares) out for 20 days

dreamer75

05-10-2009, 08:56 PM

FT Palermo [2 - 0] Juventus

37' [1 - 0] E. Cavani

42' [2 - 0] F.H. Simplicio

dreamer75

05-10-2009, 09:01 PM

Goal.com World Player Of The Week: Gianluigi Buffon - Juventus & Italy

Join Goal.com for another global player worthy of recognition...
Sep 21, 2009 12:41:59 PM

Welcome to Goal.com's regular feature: Goal.com World Player of the Week. Each week our worldwide team of editors will put forward a selected candidate, as chosen by Goal.com International, who deserves recognition for achieving something special that matchday. It won't necessarily be the best player in the world - at least not usually - but whoever we nominate will have done something amazing. It might be for a particularly awesome performance or for something praiseworthy off the pitch - either way, the person in question deserves special attention...

Goal.com World Player of the Week #18: GIANLUIGI BUFFON
Club: Juventus
Country: Italy
Age: 31
Role: Goalkeeper

Goal.com's 18th World Player of the Week is hitting a rich vein of form for club and country after a difficult term last season.

Buffon was restricted to 23 appearances in Serie A last time around with many commentators speculating that his replacement, Alex Manninger, was actually performing better for Juventus when called upon.

However, over the past number of matchdays, the World Cup winner has reaffirmed his class. Majestic displays against Georgia and Bulgaria for the Azzurri last month had propelled 'Gigi' back into the 'Best Goalkeeper in the World' debate, and his past two matches have emphasised his claim to the throne.

A commanding performance against Bordeaux in last week's Champions League tie featured a string of vital and improbable saves, while his goalkeeping masterclass against Livorno this past weekend had to be seen to be believed. On paper, it was a routine 2-0 for the Old Lady, but in reality, Ciro Ferrara owes a large chunk of gratitude to his custodian.

There can be no doubt about it; as Carlo Garganese points out, Gianluigi Buffon is the most on-form player in the world at the moment and is quickly re-establishing his credentials as the planet's best glovesman.

Congratulations to Gianluigi, our 18th Goal.com World Player of the Week!

Honourable Mentions:

1. Katlego Mphela (Mamelodi Sundowns - South Africa)

Mphela deserves a mention after rescuing his national side against the minnows of Madagascar as South Africa won 1-0. This weekend's goal was his eighth in a Bafana jersey. Mphela had also scored a Premier Soccer League brace for Sundowns during the week in their 4-2 loss to Wits University.

2. Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid - Portugal)

Another game, another brace for the world's most expensive footballer. 'CR9' netted twice during the week for los Merengues against FC Zurich in the Champions League and repeated the trick against Xerez in La Liga.

3. Adriano (Flamengo - Brazil)

He's fought his way back into international reckoning on merit, but 'the Emperor' shows no signs of resting on his laurels. The former Inter forward is now top scorer in the Brazilian championship after his weekend brace against Coritiba.

4. Thomas Vermaelen (Arsenal - Belgium)

Four goals in eight games is not a bad return for a centre-back new to the Arsenal side, and the Belgium defender has also overseen a clean-sheet at last. Vermaelen inspired a comeback during the week in the Champions League against AZ before his telling contributions in the weekend Premier League win against Wigan Athletic.

Leave your notes of congratulations for Gianluigi below, or discuss who else deserves a place in the sun this week...

dreamer75

05-10-2009, 09:01 PM

http://i.media.goal.com/g/56378_hp.jpg

dreamer75

05-10-2009, 09:03 PM

Player Ratings: Palermo 2-0 Juventus

Juventus

Buffon – 6.5: Made a great save to deny Miccoli a one on one chance on 59 minutes, as well as a fierce drive by Cavani earlier on 36 minutes. Was not at fault for either of the goals.

Zebina – 5: Disappointing night for the Frenchman, who failed to continue his impressive run of form of late. Was replaced in the latter stages for Grygera.

Legrottaglie – 5.5: Clumsy at times, and lacked the confidence against Cavani and Miccoli in particular.

Chiellini – 5.5: Made a crucial interception to deny a powerful Cassani shot on 18 minutes, however with exception to that, he looked susceptible to a large majority of the opposition’s attacking threats.

Grosso – 6: Slow start, but worked his way into it as the match wore on. Was the best of the back four, and this was confirmed by an impressive sliding challenge late on to deny Miccoli the chance to make it three.

Camoranesi – 6.5: Gave away the free kick that led to the second goal, however excluding that, he was undoubtedly his side’s most dangerous player when in possession of the ball.

Felipe Melo – 5.5: His error led to the Cavani goal, as he failed to successfully control the ball, before being easily dispossessed by Pastore. Lacked confidence when moving forward.

Poulsen – 5.5: Made a bright start and looked keen to repay the faith shown in him. Should have done better with an effort from a Camoranesi cross on 49 minutes that he mi****, and thus travelled wide of the target.

Diego – 6: Central to the most of his side’s attacking thrusts; however he was just not as influential as he has been in previous matches. Saw a free kick hit the cross bar on 62 minutes, before being substituted moments later for De Ceglie.

Iaquinta – 4.5: Uninspiring display. Had the chance to pull one back on 54 minutes, but was slow to react and denied by Migliaccio instead. Looked disinterested at times, and was never going to score in this match.

Amauri – 4.5: Hit a powerful effort inches over the bar very early on in the second half, however he had no impact whatsoever yet again, as his dismal run in front of goal continued.

Substitutes

De Ceglie – 5.5: Promising future was proven immediately after coming on. Great work rate and ability to cross, providing his team-mates with quality opportunities.

Trezeguet – 5: Barely touched the ball, and failed to have any involvement in the play.

Grygera – 5.5: Picked up a booking, despite playing less than 15 minutes, to deny Budan the chance to attack.

dreamer75

05-10-2009, 09:09 PM

Ciro Ferrara Disappointed But Not Worried By Juventus’ Defeat To Palermo

The Bianconeri boss saw his side go down for the first time this season.
Oct 4, 2009 10:12:05 PM

Juventus suffered their first defeat of the campaign earlier tonight, when they were accounted for by Palermo 2-0 at the Renzo Barbera stadium, in front of a hostile Sicilian crowd.

Two goals in the space of five minutes in the first half were all it took for the Rosanero, to bring Ciro Ferrara’s unbeaten run with the Bianconeri to an end.

“Nothing worked for us tonight, and there are no excuses. Palermo played better and with more intensity,” Ferrara stressed to Sky.

“I am disappointed with the result, but not worried. Sure it hurts, but we must look ahead.”

Their failure to pick up any points in the fixture means that the Old Lady drop to third in the standings, behind the joint leaders Inter and Sampdoria.

He continued, “Last Sunday we had a small advantage over Inter, now they have one over us.

“Now there’s a break for the international matches, so I will be without many players. When they return though, we will analyse this match, and make sure that we go back to being tough and compact at the back.

“Tonight we made many mistakes, so hopefully we learn from this. We should be very bitter and disappointed leaving Palermo.”

Adrian Del Monte, Goal.com

dreamer75

05-10-2009, 09:11 PM

JuvenThe playmaker was displeased with his side's failure to reclaim first place in the league stadnings.
Oct 5, 2009 2:51:32 AM

Juventus midfielder Diego is ruing the missed opportunity for his team to go top of Serie A, following their 2-0 defeat at the hands of Palermo, their first loss for the season in all competitions.

"Unfortunately, we missed the chance to go to the top of the table," the Brazilian was reported as saying to the club's official website, Juventus.it.

"We played against a Palermo side that were very good defensively, and we did not manage to score against them.

"We also made a number of mistakes and conceded two goals.

"Now, we have two weeks in which to work and rediscover our winning form after the break."

Juventus take on Fiorentina when Serie A resumes in a fortnight.

Rick D'Andrea, Goal.comtus' Diego Laments Missed Opportunities Against Palermo

dreamer75

05-10-2009, 09:12 PM

Gianluigi Buffon Stresses That Juventus Must Bounce Back From Palermo Defeat

'Superman' concedes that his team did not bring their A-game to Sicily, and will need to improve in the future...

Oct 5, 2009 2:18:21 AM

Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is disappointed that the Bianconeri could not claim a point against Palermo, lamenting that the team were nowhere near their best against the Rosanero.

The Italian international added that Juventus must never give up during a match, something that he felt happened in Sicily.

"I think that in Palermo’s victory, there is a lot of merit towards their coach who is one of the best in our championship," Buffon said to Juventus Channel post-match.

"However, we made things easier for them by playing way below our best.

"We must now respond with a great sense of responsibility and duty, and ensure that we never give up, which we will definitely not do again.

"We must work hard to make up for this, because a defeat away to Palermo is understandable, whereas a draw against Bologna is not," remarked the keeper.

The Bianconeri take on Fiorentina when Serie A recommences in a fortnight.

Rick D'Andrea, Goal.com

dreamer75

05-10-2009, 09:14 PM

Palermo 2-0 Juventus: Rosanero two good for Old Lady

Bianconeri blown away by scintillating Sicilian display...
5 Oct 2009 06:00:00

By Stefano Federici

Palermo 2-0 Juventus: lineups/stats
Serie A results/standings

After picking up their first points on the road last weekend, Palermo continued to impress at the Barbera as they brushed aside a disappointing Juventus side on Sunday night.

Despite having the chance to go to the top of the standings Ciro Ferrara’s side were blown away in the first half as the visitors scored a quick double K.O. to head in at the break with a two goal lead.

In the second period the Bianconeri looked to fight back, but with little creativity in the final third, Juve failed to create enough clear cut openings whilst the Rosanero continued to threaten on the counter attack.

Palermo came flying out the blocks and almost found the net within 30 seconds when Miccoli charged through the Juventus line.

The pint-sized playmaker went close again just five minutes later when he was threaded in by Javier Pastore. The shot to the near post did little to test Gianluigi Buffon however, and the World Cup winning keeper was well positioned to collect the danger.

On 15 minutes the Rosanero should have taken the lead when Miccoli put a delightful ball over the box for Edinson Cavani. The Uruguayan snatched at the ball with his head and was unable to steer the ball goalbound from 6-yards.

The Aquile continued to attack at will, and Ferrara’s men were making heavy work of controlling the midfield as Pastore continued to work the strings and thread Miccoli into the danger zones.

On the half hour mark the Bianconeri had a golden chance when Camoranesi smashed a loose ball goalbound from inside the box. Fortunately for the home side Cesare Bovo was well placed on the line to stab the ball clear.

Just eight minutes before the break Palermo took a deserved lead when Pastore fed Cavani into the box down the right. This time the Uruguayan was spot on as he smashed his shot into the roof of the net leaving Buffon helpless between the sticks. The Bianconeri were opened up far too easily as Felipe Melo failed to stop the Sicilians breaking forward.

Three minutes later the Rosanero doubled their lead in emphatic fashion when Miccoli floated a free kick over the top for Simplicio, who smashed home from 5-yards. The Juventus backline was completely static as the ball came over and the Brazilian cut them in two with his perfectly timed run.

The visitors came flying back after the re-start as they looked to find a way back, and after just 90 seconds Amauri smashed a great effort just over against his former employers.

Palermo held off prolonged periods of pressure from the visitors, and Zenga’s men continued to attack with great intent on the counter.

On 55 minutes Mark Bresciano should have added a third to his side’s haul when his free header finished just wide of the post with Buffon beaten. The Bianconeri were once again caught napping as the cross came in from the right.

The visitors almost got themselves back into the match when Diego floated a wonderful ball onto the crossbar on 62 minutes. After closer inspection of the action replay it appeared Salvatore Sirigu had taken a decisive touch as the ball flew towards him and onto the bar.

Palermo continued to threaten despite Juventus’ increasing commitment to getting men forward in numbers. On 70 minutes Bresciano fired a great drive from range, but Buffon made an equally impressive save to keep the scoreline respectable.

Ferrara’s men could only launch balls into the box as they looked to find an opener, but with Amauri and Iaquinta heavily marked, the Juve forwards could do little to threaten the Palermo goal.

The Aquile should have had their third with just ten minutes to go when Miccoli went solo down the right wing and smashed a great effort onto the near post. It would have been the cherry on the cake for ‘El Pibe De Nardo’, who had torn the visitors apart with a man of the match performance.

The visitors threw everything forward in the final minutes but it was far too late as Palermo closed out an impressive victory to ease the pressure of coach Zenga and climb back to the comfort of mid-table.

dreamer75

05-10-2009, 09:16 PM

Jean-Claude Blanc Set To Be Named Juventus President

Juve chief Cobolli Gigli will reportedly step down next week and Blanc is expected to take over the reins...
Oct 5, 2009 8:02:52 AM

According to a report on Firenzeviola.it, a major shake-up may be looming for Serie A giants Juventus as President Giovanni Cobolli Gigli is set to resign his post.

Cobolli Gigli has been at the helm of the Turin side since the Calciopoli scandal that saw the Old Lady demoted to Serie B.

It is believed that the club board has identified chief executive Jean-Claude Blanc as the right man to continue Cobolli’s work and sources close to the Stadio Olimpico outfit suggest that the decision will be announced next Monday, with Blanc taking office from October 26.

The move is evidently not tied to Juve’s recent run of poor results and all the parties had reportedly agreed to this change months ago.

Juventus are without a win in their last four outings in all competitions and stumbled to a 2-0 defeat to Palermo last night.

Vince Masiello, Goal.com

dreamer75

05-10-2009, 09:17 PM

Juventus Keep Tabs On Uruguayan Starlet Matias Aguirregaray - Report

Reports in Italy suggest the Bianconeri are planning a move for the highly-rated defender...
Oct 5, 2009 9:27:33 AM

Juventus have joined the race to sign Penarol defender Matias Aguirregaray.

According to Tuttosport, the Bianconeri have been following the Uruguayan under-20 international for some time now. It is said the right-back, who can also adapt to play in midfield and has been hailed as the 'new Cafu', has been added to the clubs' transfer hitlist on Alessio Secco's orders.

The report suggests that Bianconeri observers have been following his progress in the under-20 World Cup, and they have reported back with positive news. Juve are considering the youngster as the ideal replacement for Zedenek Grygera and Jonathan Zebina in the future.

Hia agent is former Old Lady stopper Paolo Montero and voices in Turin claim a €5million bid will suffice to lure Aguirregaray to Vinovo.

Despite the report, Juventus have not confirmed an interest in the defender.

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

Israeli

12-10-2009, 07:19 PM

Hello Juventus fan are here anyone who fly to Israel to support your team against Macabi Haifa? I checked that tickets for Juve fans sector cost 100 Euro. I can sell you tickets much cheaper 40 Euro but in Haifa sectors don't worry Israeli fans not Italian tifozi it is not dangerious to sit with Haifa supporters more over there are a lot of Juventus fans in Israel they will seat in Haifa sector. If somoone interested in my offer please write me/ Or contact my email ultrasfcdk(shtrudel)gmailDOTcom

dreamer75

18-10-2009, 04:40 PM

FT Juventus [1 - 1] Fiorentina

5' [0 - 1] J. Vargas

19' [1 - 1] Amauri

Boi_racer

26-10-2009, 07:33 AM

Juventus returns to winning ways with an Amauri winner against Siena.

Congrats :)

dummydam

26-10-2009, 08:45 PM

juventus defeated Siena away from home.. where can i see the highlights

Boi_racer

26-10-2009, 09:19 PM

Boi_racer

27-10-2009, 04:00 AM

Bad news....Vincenzo Iaquinta will be out for at least two months as he must undergo knee surgery.

The Turin club announced today that tests on the 29-year-old's left knee have revealed damage to his meniscus.

He could be sidelined until next year. :s31:

Cissiboy

27-10-2009, 04:53 PM

yep considering Marchisio juste went under surgery for meniscus, Buffon is waiting as long as he can but he will have to as well, now Iaquinta...

there must be a reason.

3 cases same team same injury cannot be coincidence

enriqueyang

01-11-2009, 10:18 AM

omg how can u guys throw away 2 goals lead and lost 3-2 at home and get player sent off somemore =.='

Cissiboy

02-11-2009, 12:14 AM

Amauri sent off erroneusly .. and I knew that having Cannavaro was not a good deal..defense is too weak..

dreamer75

06-11-2009, 09:18 PM

sorry for the lack of updates :(

dreamer75

06-11-2009, 09:40 PM

Player Ratings: Juventus 2-3 Napoli

JUVENTUS

Buffon: 6.5 - Made a brilliant save from Aronica's 19th minute shot, but in reality could do little to prevent the goals as his defense evaporated in front of him.

Grygera: 6 - A real game of two halves. Linked well with Camoranesi and delivered a superb cross for Juventus' first goal, but was horribly exposed by Datolo in the second half.

Cannavaro: 5 - Struggled to deal with the pace of Lavezzi and looked uncharacteristically uncertain on crosses.

Chiellini: 5.5 - He will be disappointed with the manner in which Juventus conceded the three goals, but he must take a share of the blame.

Grosso: 5.5 - Tried to get forward but was well marshaled by Maggio. When he did get into the final third his crossing was poor, and he lost out on numerous tackles over the course of the match.

Melo: 6 - He missed having Sissoko alongside him and did not dominate as much as against Sampdoria. Fairly comfortable in possession but didn't offer much protection to the back four in the second half.

Poulsen: 5.5 - Gave the ball away on occasions but had a solid first half. Has never really succeeded at Juventus and his less talented side came out in the second half, doing very little to stop Napoli's attacks.

Camoranesi: 6.5 - He was very bright early on but had to be substituted after 30 mins due to injury.

Diego: 5 - Saw glimpses of his talent but he was not as prominent as previous games. Someone needed to take command of the game when it was all square in the second half, and he was conspicuous by his absence.

Giovinco: 6.5 - He missed a glorious chance in the 1st minute, but made up for it by converting his 54th minute goal. Worked hard and is clearly growing in confidence.

Trezeguet: 6.5 - He scored with an excellent header to give Juventus the lead, but should have doubled the lead on the hour.

Substitutes:

Tiago: 4.5 - Initially he settled into the midfield well but it was his woeful clearance that set up Napoli's decisive third goal.

Amauri: 3 - Brought on with 15 minutes left to give Juventus the lead, but was totally anonymous until his boot caught De Sanctis' face to earn him a red card.

De Ceglie: N/A - Too little time to influence a game that was rapidly slipping away from Juventus.

dreamer75

06-11-2009, 09:44 PM

The defeat was in no way Ferrara's fault. We are coming from a convincing victory over a good side sampdoria thrashing them 5-1, then leading 2-0 in the 2nd half vs Napoli, only individual mistakes can make you loose such a game, unfortunately we had too many individual mistakes.

Ferrara's disposal wasn't a good option to pick from as-well. Amauri was forced to play in the last min as he was sick and others can't fill Sissoko, Marchisio, Del Piero and Iaquinta's place.

Ferrara started the formation well with a weak bench, and the likes of Cannavaro and Grosso should have enough experience to solve the things on the field and organize things immediately because from the outside there's not much Ferrara can do.

dreamer75

06-11-2009, 09:46 PM

[CL] Maccabi Haifa 0-1 Juventus, Nov 3rd, 2009

I didn't think this game was as bad as people are making out.

It wasn't great and it certainly wasn't pretty, but we went away in the CL with a very depleted squad and controlled the game and won.

I thought the first half was good and that Amauri and Diego seemed to be getting to know each other. Several chances were made and we should have been further ahead.

The team, understandably, got nervous in the second half, but the defence stood firm and the team made a better effort at controlling possession when in the lead than often happens (still not good, but an improvement).

If you'd offered me this situation in the group at before the first game, I would have taken it. We have to fook up to not qualify, and that is all you can ask for.

Diego was the best player on the pitch.

Honourable mentions for Poulsen and Legrottaglie.

dreamer75

06-11-2009, 09:46 PM

[Serie A] Atalanta-Juventus, Nov 7th, 2009

http://www.juventuz.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=39681&stc=1&d=1257284392

dreamer75

06-11-2009, 09:47 PM

Flu strikes down Atalanta

Friday 6 November, 2009

Seven Atalanta players will miss this weekend's match against Juventus, of which three are suffering from the flu.

The news couldn't have come at a worse time for Antonio Conte, as his side have lost their last two games in Serie A.

Conte will visit Ivan Radovanovic this morning to check on his recovery from twisted ankle.

However, of more concern are the conditions of three players who arrived at training yesterday with the flu.

Paolo Bianco, Gianpaolo Bellini and Maximiliano Pellegrino, all of whom are defenders, were sent home after showing the first symptoms of the virus.

dreamer75

08-11-2009, 11:29 PM

FT Atalanta [2 - 5] Juventus

36' [0 - 1] M. Camoranesi

37' [0 - 2] M. Camoranesi

51' [1 - 2] J.A. Valdes

55' [1 - 3] F. Melo

71' [2 - 3] F. Ceravolo

84' [2 - 4] Diego

87' [2 - 5] D. Trezegue

:D

dreamer75

09-11-2009, 09:17 PM

Atalanta 2-5 Juventus: Bianconeri Run Rampant And Put Pressure On Inter

Juventus cut the gap with Inter to 4 points with a convincing away win at Atalanta.

Nov 7, 2009 4:40:35 PM

Atalanta welcomed a Juventus side in need of a victory to avenge last week’s home defeat to Napoli, which has left them seven points below table leaders Inter.

The first chance came in the 11th minute, when Felipe Melo spotted Mauro Camoranesi’s run and the winger unleashed a shot that was turned around the post by goalkeeper Andrea Consigli.

The home side responded four minutes later as Jaime Valdes played a long ball to Simone Tiribocchi, who found himself alone in front of Gianluigi Buffon but fired it just wide of the post.

In the 25th minute, there was another chance for Atalanta, as Tiberio Guarente played a long ball to Fabio Ceravolo, and Fabio Grosso tried to intercept the pass but mi**** it, forcing Buffon to come off his line and clear the ball away.

Three minutes after that, the visitors had the ball in the net through David Trezeguet, who headed in a cross from Jose Caceres, but it was ruled out for offside.

Atalanta captain Cristiano Doni came close just after the half hour mark with a nice volley on a cross by Valdes which he sent just wide of the post.

Just when the Nerazzurri were enjoying their best spell, Juve opened the score. In the 35th minute, Grosso sent in a perfect cross after good work on the right wing, and Camoranesi beat Consigli with a nice header.

Incredibly, the Italian international struck again just two minutes later, as he fired a precise shot from the edge of the penalty which found its way into the net to make it 0-2.

Juve continued to play with confidence after that, although Atalanta had one last chance just before the break, as Guarente’s volley on a cross by Valdes forced a great save from Buffon.

(Mauro Camoranesi scored a brace to send Juve 2-0 up before half time against Atalanta)

During the break no changes were made by either coach.

Five minutes in, Atalanta re-opened the match with a goal by Valdes, who coolly beat Buffon after receiving a splendid pass from Guarente inside the area to make it 1-2.

In the 53rd minute, Juve thought they had their third goal, but Felipe Melo was judged to be offside when he beat Consigli after a free kick by Diego. The same thing happened a minute later, when it was Christian Poulsen who was ruled to be offside when he headed the ball past the Atalanta goalkeeper.

Despite these setbacks, the Bianconeri did not let up and in the 55th minute they did get their third goal, as Melo's shot from distance proved too much to handle for Consigli, who saw the ball fly into the top corner of his net.

After a frantic first ten minutes of the second half, the match slowed down a bit and there were no more chances for a while. In the 69th minute, Atalanta had a chance as Doni played it into the area for Valdes, whose shot toward the far post went just wide.

Two minutes later, the home side scored their second goal of the evening to bring back some suspense. Valdes played it on the left to Tiribocchi, who played a first-time pass to Ceravolo, who went past Grosso and beat Buffon with a precise shot.

Juve nevertheless continued to control the match after that, and sealed the three points with a fourth goal in the 85th minute. Once again Camoranesi was involved as he made a run on the right and played in a cross that was controlled by Diego, who beat Consigli with a nice touch off his left foot.

A minute later, they even scored a fifth goal, as Trezeguet was found by Giorgio Chiellini and beat Consigli after making a nice turn. It was his 167th goal for Juve, allowing him to equal Omar Sivori's record.

The referee decided the end the match after the 90 minutes, ignoring stoppage time. The Bianconeri were then able to celebrate a crucial and convincing 5-2 victory that will put some pressure on Inter ahead of their match against Roma tomorrow evening.

Danilo Pochini, Goal.com

dreamer75

09-11-2009, 09:19 PM

http://i.media.goal.com/g/60432_news.jpg

dreamer75

09-11-2009, 09:20 PM

http://www.goal.com/images/38987_hp.jpg

dreamer75

09-11-2009, 09:21 PM

Player Ratings: Atalanta 2–5 Juventus

JUVENTUS

Buffon: 6 - The Italian number one did not have too much to do but when he was called upon to make the big save he did just that as witnessed by his stop on Guarente just before half-time. Might have done better to stop Valdes but had no chance on Ceravolo’s goal.

Caceres: 6 - He is not scared to push forward and whipped in a series of crosses into the box. Caught out on Valdes’ goal though and the full-back position remains a real concern for the Old Lady.

Cannavaro: 7 - Steady at the back this evening in rainy conditions that do not favor defenders. Only blemish on his match tonight was the silly yellow card he picked up in the second half.

Chiellini: 8 - The tough as nails Italian defender just might be the first name on Ferrara’s team sheet every week. He is great in the air, ferocious in the tackle and dangerous on set pieces.

Grosso: 7 - We saw the good and the bad from the Italian defender tonight. He almost gifted Ceravolo a goal with a poor back pass in the early going and then had to pick up his shorts after the Atalanta midfielder got the better of him. He also showed why he is one of Marcello Lippi’s favorites as his probing runs set up Camoranesi’s two goals.

Poulsen: 7 - The much maligned Danish midfielder put in a solid shift tonight and protected the back line admirably. Made a plethora of important tackles.

Felipe Melo: 7.5 - Had a goal disallowed but his persistence paid off when he scored the goal of the match with a laser beam that found the top corner.

Camoranesi: 8.5 - Scored the first two goals of the game to send Juve on their way. When he is firing on all cylinders, the Bianconeri are a tough nut to crack. He has now scored three goals in his past two games and looks like the Camoranesi circa 2006.

Diego: 7 - The Brazilian maestro put the match to bed with a goal late on and looked dangerous with the ball at his feet.

Giovinco: 5.5 -The diminutive dynamo was muscled off the ball one time too many and his first touch was brutal tonight. The only stain on Juve’s performance this evening.

Trezeguet: 7 - The Frenchman played as the lone striker tonight and despite disappearing for brief stretches during the game he did what he does best as he scored his 167th goal for the club.

Subs

De Ceglie: 6.5 – Came on for the disappointing Giovinco and played fairly well in the 18 minutes he was on the pitch.

Immobile: NA – Brief cameo appearance.

Max De Luca, Goal.com

dreamer75

09-11-2009, 09:23 PM

Ranieri Tells Juventus: Believe You Can Win The Scudetto

The Italian has told Juventus not to let the gap with Inter distract them from their Scudetto ambitions.

Roma coach Claudio Ranieri has given former side Juventus a salutary soliloquy, telling them to still have faith in the Scudetto, despite the seven point gap with Inter.

The Old Lady are lagging behind the league leaders, but Ranieri, who coached the team for two seasons, believes they can win the Scudetto if they keep holding onto the hand of faith.

"I am sorry that my Roma side are not in the higher part of the league, but I am not thinking about this," Ranieri told the press.

"I am looking at other teams. Inter have a big advantage in the league, but if I was [Juventus]in second place I would carry on believing."

Roma travel to the San Siro on Sunday where they play host to Inter. Juve will be hoping the former 'Tinkerman' can do them a favor.

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

dreamer75

09-11-2009, 09:23 PM

Diego Hails Perfect Evening for Himself And Juventus

The Bianconeri obtained a precious 5-2 win against Atalanta to momentarily cut down the gap to Inter at the top of the standings.
Nov 8, 2009 4:24:09 AM

Juventus midfielder Diego celebrated his third goal in Serie A on Saturday night as his side defeated Atalanta 5-2 in the 12th matchday of the Italian top flight.

Diego hailed the perfect evening and expressed his joy at his performance, as well as the three points earned by the Bianconeri to move within four points of Inter in the title race.

"When you score and win, the evening is always perfect," commented the former Werder Bremen player to juventus.it.

"I'm very happy about this goal which gives me joy and more tranquillity to work, but especially for a win which improves our morale.

"We have a lot of quality in this team and tonight we proved it."

Juventus currently have 24 points from 12 games played as they sit in second place in Serie A, three points ahead of Sampdoria and five clear of Milan.

Glenn Debattista, Goal.com

dreamer75

09-11-2009, 09:27 PM

Serie A Team Of The Week: Round 12

Goal.com looks at the best performing players from the twelfth round of the Serie A calendar. Genoa, Juve, and Fiorentina all have two players in the Best XI.

Nov 9, 2009 5:00:00 AM

Formation: 3-4-3

Goalkeeper

Julio Sergio (Roma): Filling in for Doni, he made a number of impressive stops to help Roma to a 1-1 draw at the San Siro against Inter. He robbed the prolific Diego Milito and Sulley Muntari during the first-half and was safe for the rest of the match.

Defence

Cristian Zaccardo (Parma): The former Italian international is certainly enjoying life more at Parma than he did at Wolfsburg, another competent performance down the right side to helping the Gialloblu after their return from Serie B. They are in seventh place!

Thiago Silva (Milan): The 25-year-old opened the scoring at the Stadio Olimpico, but that is not why he is in the Best XI. He has formed arguably the best center-back partnership in Serie A with Alessandro Nesta and most definitely satisfied coach Leonardo with a secure display against Lazio.

Cesare Natali (Fiorentina): Led the Viola backline with exceptional personality against his former side, he did not put a foot wrong and gave Simone Pepe and Bernardo Corradi absolutely no space to work with.

Midfield

Mauro Camoranesi (Juventus): The World Cup winner opened the scoring in Bergamo with two goals in quick succession, proving a handful for the defense. The veteran is no doubt a key piece of Ciro Ferrara’s Bianconeri and adds an important dimension and cutting edge to the

Felipe Melo (Juventus): The Brazilian showed why the Italian giants paid so much for his signature, a great job in the middle of the park and an absolutely fantastic goal in the topsy-turvy romp over Atalanta.

Daniele Conti (Cagliari): The island outfit now have four wins on the trot, with no shortage of assistance from this player. Throughout the match, he actively closed down the opposition and sparked the attack, but his most crucial involvement came in the last five minutes when he opened the scoring and was then also involved in the goal that condemned Sampdoria to a spectacular loss.

Juan Vargas (Fiorentina): In devastating form lately for the Viola and made another telling contribution as his late set-piece found the back of the net, albeit with a bit of luck, to give Fiorentina a precious three points at the Stadio Friuli. Is it any wonder he is being linked with Real Madrid?

Attack

Marcelo Zalayeta (Bologna): The Rossoblu are in the midst of the relegation battle, but ‘El Pantera’ scored a well-taken double and was the star in the 3-1 victory over Palermo, a result that gave Bologna just a bit of breathing space.

Hernan Crespo (Genoa): One of the most natural poachers of his generation, ‘Valdanito’ still hasn’t lost his touch. He pounced on two opportunities to secure a brace against Siena and could have even had a hat-trick.

Rodrigo Palacio (Genoa): The Argentine seemed to be everywhere on the pitch for the Grifoni, a brilliant and hard-working show at the Marassi, with a couple of assists along the way!

Julio Sergio

Zaccardo – Thiago Silva – Natali

Camoranesi – Felipe Melo – Conti – Vargas

Zalayeta – Crespo - Palacio

Honourable Mention
Cristian Llama (Catania)
Jaime Valdes (Atalanta)
Diego (Juventus)
David Trezeguet (Juventus)
Marcelo Zalayeta (Bologna)
Nicola Mingazzini (Bologna)
Davide Biondini (Cagliari)
Raffaele Palladino (Genoa)
Alessandro Nesta (Milan)
Alexandre Pato (Milan)
Mauro Zarate (Lazio)
Dusan Basta (Udinese)
Sebastien Frey (Fiorentina)
Marco Marchionni (Fiorentina)
Philippe Mexes (Roma)

Adam Scime, Goal.com

dreamer75

09-11-2009, 09:32 PM

Decent game from the team although would've liked if it was more comfortable considering we scored twice before they even got a sniff, but overall good game considering we are playing away to an attacking team and we restricted them to two chances ( and as Red said they were two well taken goals).

Its good to see camo back to his best. Its just delightful seeing him play like that, lets hope he doesn't get any injuries to hamper this run.

Many mentioned Poulsen who was good in covering and the same for Melo who is playing better every game. Felipe seems to be better suited in having a bigger role than covering the back line. Still needs to increase his concentration, doesn't matter how many balls he retrieved, if hes going to send right back to the opposition to create a counter.

Caceras is also improving defensively i thought. He didn't go running like a madman as much as he did before (especially in the beginning of the season) which is promising. He still needs to up his game defensively though, Valdez gave a very hard time in the second half.

We conceded because the defense was pushing up, i think its the first goal that you saw both Chiellini and Canna near the half way line instead of dropping deep. Thats an interesting strategy, I'm not a big fan of it for every game because then you are susceptible against better attacking teams.

Finally I thought Trezi had a very good game. We must consider the system while evaluating the striker imo. Whoever it is, this system will favor the midfielders more but credit to trezi who was involved in more than expected with neat layoffs and passes with a great deal of hustle to help the midfield. He was close to everything good we had taking up good positions. The only negative were the offsides especially the one with has cancelled goal as he could've done better. But overall congrats on reaching the record and if he keeps playing like this i have no doubt he will break it easily and reach another milestone.

Now lets take a break, get the injured players back and play on from there.

dreamer75

09-11-2009, 09:37 PM

Stats !

Ball possession
Juventus 51.8% - Atalanta 48.2%

Passes
Juventus 417 (80.34%) - Atalanta 388 ( 72.42%)

Shots on target
Juventus 6 - Atalanta 3

Shots off target
Juventus 4 - Atalanta 5

Shots blocked
Juventus 6 - Atalanta 0

Corners
Juventus 4 - Atalanta 2

Cross
Juventus 30 - Atalanta 23

Fouls Suffered
Juventus 10 - Atalanta 19

Intresting stats :

Flipe melo : 73 passes (83.56%) -
Poulsen : 50 passes (86.00%) -
Diego :48 passes (79.17%) - 4 cross ( 1 correct) 3 shots ( 1 on target) - 1 goal
Camo: 44 passes (75.00%) - 5 cross( 2 correct) - 4 shot (3 on target) - 2 goal

+ Trez had 2 Shots, one goal !

Passing directions :

http://i.imagehost.org/0236/Virgilio_Sport_1257668665862.png

Attacking directions :

http://i.imagehost.org/0299/Virgilio_Sport_1257668688403.png

http://i.imagehost.org/0205/Virgilio_Sport_1257668696820.png

dreamer75

09-11-2009, 09:38 PM

Player Ratings...

Billy Buffon.
Not much chance on either goal conceded, other than which he was rarely flustered, solid when called upon. Made no Superman saves. 7.

Grosso
Lovely assist for one of Camo's goal, but other than that, his distribution wasn't great and he was caught out badly for their second. Made one, gave one way.6

Caceres
Easier to forgive for losing his man once and gifting the ****ers a goal, due to his age, and lack of experience in our league. His movement forward it lovely and I can easily see him and his south american buddy Camo forming a decent line of strength down the left flank, if given time and patience. He is fleet footed, brave, adventurous but lacking tactical nous. Encouraging....6.5

Chiellini
SOlid performance from Kong. Gave nothing away, foraged forward often, kept things moving, no errors, won almost all aerial battles. 8

Cannavaro
Its pleasing to have a cool, calm, mature head in the back line. His composure was assured throughout. We can have at least one wicked season from the baby faced thug...7.

Poulsen
Calm, confident, kept his passing simple and made some decent interceptions. One of the least error ridden performances so far for him in a bianconeri jersey...solid.7

Melo
Managed not to gift the opposition any goals, and despite a few misplaced passes in the final third, he was sporadically beastly, peaking when he scored that blistering drive from 20 yards out. If the keeper had got his hand to that he would have lost his fingers. And rightly so...Melo is improving, 7.5

Camo
Sticking in the richest vein of form I have seen of the argie swine for many moons. Took both his goals beautifully, especially the second, linked up well with caceres and diego. Was instrumental in most of our best offensive movement. Also chased back more to help out Caceres, than I usually see him do with Goblin...perhaps they are friends. 9.

Giovinco
Disappointing. Showed enthusiasm, but not much else. We need more from him than liveliness, to justify both the formation and his continued inclusion. 6.

Diego
His ability on the ball reminds me of a young Zidane, very rarely conceding possession, always finding a man when he passes, covering a lot of ground for an attacking midfielder. His goal was class...Promising. 8

Trez
I was as always, so happy when he scored...which he did in typical trez style, when everyone was ready to cast his performance to the wayside as another anonymous showing, but wait a second...ITS IN....bravo frogman. I still love him...and he still loves to score. His trademark, wide eyed, child smile is most welcome to my screen...7.5

SUBS
De Ceglie
Not much time, but helped to create Trez's instinctive finish when he completely spooned his own attempt to shoot. 6

Immobile
As if Ciro hear me, Ferrara not the youngster, the free scoring youth star looked excitable and hard to handle...though...by this point, Atalanta were DEAD...commendable cameo. 7

We were clearly of a higher technical class that our opponents. And it wasn't really until they worked out that we had Caceres and Grosso playing, and therefore our flanks were vulnerable, that they gave us any real trauma...Of course I felt a little edgy when they pulled a goal back, twice...but we maintained our spirit, and kept on controlling the tempo, calmly, had a few goals rightly disallowed, but popped in three more which counted...2-5 seems a little harsh, but to be fair, it could have been more, despite the fact that we didnt play amazingly well.

This performance was definite improvement over the last two games. The spirit in the camp seems to have steadied. Belief is running through the team, from back to front...and with Momo, Marchiso, DP and Amauri to return over the coming 4 weeks, to the first team, I am once again excited and optimistic.

Man of the Match...Camo.

dreamer75

09-11-2009, 09:40 PM

http://www.seatwave.com/filestore/SEASON/IMAGE/juventus_002179_1_MainPicture.jpg

dreamer75

09-11-2009, 09:43 PM

[Serie A] Juventus-Udinese, Nov 22nd, 2009

Hopefully the international break won't affect us negatively this time.
http://www.juventuz.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=39743&stc=1&d=1257630528

dreamer75

10-11-2009, 01:48 PM

The old and the new keep Juve in contention

It all started on September 19th in the year 2000. David Trezeguet, a high profile 40 billion lira signing from the then French champions AS Monaco, scored his first goal for Juventus – an 83rd minute winner against Panathinaikos in the Champions League.

Nine years later, the 32-year-old Frenchman, who spent his formative years in Argentina watching his father finish his own playing career, celebrated his 167th goal for the Bianconeri, making him the most prolific foreign goalscorer in the club’s history.

The man Trezeguet overtook in the scoring charts was Omar Sivori, the legendary second striker, one of “the angels with dirty faces”, who would play for Argentina and then Italy as an oriundo in the `50s and `60s. “The goal has been realised, but the season continues. I am very happy. I have arrived at a goal that was very important for me personally. Reaching Sivori is something that I didn’t expect when I arrived at Juve,” Trezeguet said while holding his shirt aloft in front of the Bianconeri’s travelling support.

“Hosana, King David!” La Gazzetta dello Sport roared in tribute to a truly imperious centre-forward who has rarely, if ever, got the recognition he deserves outside of Italy. Frequently derided for “going missing” by the English Press and all too often remembered as the striker who missed the crucial penalty in the 2006 World Cup final instead of the winner in Euro 2000, it’s time to pause and reflect on Trezeguet’s achievements in Turin over the last decade.

Trez became the Serie A Capocannoniere in just his second season with Juventus, scoring 32 goals in all competitions. He has found the net on 15 or more occasions in six of his ten years in Italy and is on record as scoring a goal every other game in Europe. A four-time Scudetto winner – if you count the two revoked after the Calciopoli scandal as the club do – Trezeguet’s actual presence on the pitch is often questioned, but the stats above suggest his presence in the history books will not.

His cold, moody and sometimes slightly aloof demeanour certainly hasn’t helped his image in the eyes of the game’s fans and pundits, but you could quite simply argue that those attributes have made him the player he is today. Just as with Zinedine Zidane, who Jorge Valdano said had a hard drive for a brain that processed the right decision for every possible situation, you get the feeling that Trezeguet is equally complex, as are several of the players from that generation of French footballers who dominated the international scene in the late `90s and early `00s.

Always ready enough to ally himself with Juventus’ illustrious history and to acknowledge the role the club has played in shaping him as a player, Trezeguet has often expressed his desire to leave. He testified against Luciano Moggi, the man who brought him to Juventus in 2000 and allegedly wouldn’t let him move to Barcelona in 2004, in the GEA trial in 2006.

On scoring his 15th goal of the 2006-07 season in Serie B, he made a typically Italian gesture towards the then Juventus President Giovanni Cobolli Gigli that he’d had enough of slumming it in the Second Division and would now be leaving. And more recently, he did his best to discredit Claudio Ranieri after “the Tinkerman” left him out too much following his recovery from a double knee operation.

His disruptive attitude persuaded the Juventus board to flaunt him discreetly on the transfer market in the summer, but out of respect for his place in the club’s history, director of sport Alessio Secco said he would only sell Trezeguet if the destination suited him. He is likely to return to France, where he’ll finish his career, in the summer, but in the meantime, Trezeguet has done enough to remind the Curva Scirea why they should still love and always remember him.

Asked if he believes Juventus can win the Scudetto for the first time after Calciopoli, Trezeguet, the Bianconeri’s top scorer this season, replied: “Sure I believe it. Now we have to rediscover our continuity. We have 15 days in which to work, with the return of some injured players, then a decisive phase of the season starts for us.”

Saturday evening’s 5-2 victory over Atalanta was called “another Juve binge” by La Gazzetta dello Sport, reminding readers that it was the second time the Bianconeri have scored five goals in their last three games. However, instead of being met with praise, the performance was received with scepticism. “Juve are back. They didn’t fly but ran. It’s true, there isn’t much to frighten Inter,” Luca Calamai wrote.

The implication being that despite scoring five goals and seeing three disallowed, Juventus weren’t convincing, in fact, their performance was strange. No more so was that apparently demonstrated than in the diminutive Mauro Camoranesi scoring a header. Il Corriere della Sera aimed its sights at the Bianconeri’s defence, which was accused of defending too high and twice let Atalanta back into the game, at 2-1 and 3-2. Given Juventus’ backline is also four-fifths Italy’s, alarm bells are understandably ringing ahead of next summer’s World Cup.

There were positive signs, though, as the old guard and new – recently criticised – signings blended well together, sharing the load going forward. Like Trezeguet said, the upcoming international break gives Juventus time to prepare and to recover a number of injured players from Amauri and Ale Del Piero to Momo Sissoko and Claudio Marchisio.

The question is, can Juventus find the level of continuity required of them and will Inter drop any points to make the meeting between the two sides on December 6 really mean something? After all, no team has had a seven-point lead at the top of Serie A after just eleven weeks of the season and – as Jean-Claude Blanc intimated during the week – an even greater gap is simply unacceptable considering the €55.3m spent on new players in the summer. Fortunately for the Bianconeri, Inter were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Roma on Sunday evening and their lead cut to five points accordingly.

Talking Points
The Antonio Cassano debate scaled new heights this week. After doing his level best to undo all the good work he has done in showing a new, more mature side to his character by telling Samp fans they need to “eat ****” every once in a while last weekend, Cassano found himself at the centre of another controversy. Sampdoria President Riccardo Garrone told Radio Capital that a “very very ugly story” was keeping Cassano out of the Italy squad. La Stampa speculated that Garrone was alluding to the relationship or apparent lack of one Cassano has with Marcello Lippi’s son who is an influential football agent while La Repubblica suggested Cassano’s former mentor Walter Mazzarri had advised Lippi against selecting him.

Just when you thought everything that could be squeezed out of the Calciopoli scandal had been, new quite astounding revelations emerged from the trial in Napoli. Manfredi Martino, the former secretary of the National Refereeing Commission, alleged that the balls used to draw referees for games in the 2004-05 season were in fact “tricked”. Martino’s accusation has come under scrutiny, though. He was asked why he didn’t make more of his belief that the balls were “discoloured” and “used” at an earlier date, to which he replied the Carabinieri who interviewed him in 2006 must not have clearly “verbalised” it to the trial’s chief prosecutors.

All is not well at Napoli. Despite still being unbeaten in five games under Walter Mazzarri following a scoreless draw away to Catania, Fabio Quagliarella’s angry reaction to being substituted has got the city talking. Taken off with just six minutes remaining, the 26-year-old striker launched a “vaffa” towards Mazzarri and carried on his tirade while sat on the bench. Quagliarella has struggled for form this season and felt he needed the extra minutes to give him some continuity. However, his recent revelation that it’s hard to forego pizza and mozzarella in Napoli is perhaps another reason for his poor performances.

Lazio’s terrible run continues. The Biancocelesti lost 2-1 at home to Milan, conceding goals from Brazilian duo Alexandre Pato and Thiago Silva, who also scored an own goal. Davide Ballardini is now expected to become the seventh managerial casualty in Serie A this season. Expect former fans’ favourite Sinisa Mihajlovic to be in contention to replace him.

Marcello Lippi had a few surprises up his sleeve as he announced his Italy squad for friendlies against Holland and Sweden over the next 10 days. Livorno’s highly rated young playmaker Antonio Candreva and Cagliari midfielder Davide Biondini received their first ever full international call ups while Giampaolo Pazzini earned a re-call after missing recent World Cup qualifiers.

miguel_mista

10-11-2009, 07:30 PM

wow, great juve coverage here!

dreamer75

10-11-2009, 10:44 PM

Moggi: Resurgent Juventus Are Getting On Inter Boss Jose Mourinho’s Nerves

The ‘Special One’ is moody because he fears the Old Lady’s challenge, according to Moggi. In fact, the former Juve director believes the Portuguese's mood could grow even darker.
Nov 10, 2009 4:43:50 AM

Former Juventus general director Luciano Moggi has launched yet another stinging attack on Inter coach Jose Mourinho via his weekly column in Libero.

“I see that Mourinho has changed,” he writes.

“I don’t know if it’s down to the fact he is feeling less confident than he used to be or simply because he wants to use a completely different tack in his second season with Inter.

“The Mourinho we all remember is the cheeky and arrogant leader who stormed our league with his superiority complex, but also with a touch of irony that mitigated his heaviest remarks.

“But there is nothing left of that Mourinho. The ‘Special One’ is not smiling any longer and is not making any jokes.

“If you look at the five goals Juve scored in Bergamo [against Atalanta in a 5-2 win], perhaps you can better understand Mourinho’s bad mood.

“And it could turn even worse if [Mauro] Camoranesi keeps flying the flag of the Juve old guard who are also ready to welcome back [Alessandro] Del Piero.”

Juve trail leaders Inter by five points after the Beneamata were held to a 1-1 draw by Roma last weekend.

Vince Masiello, Goal.com

dreamer75

10-11-2009, 10:45 PM

Italy Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon Misses Italy Reunion With Flu

The Italian number 1 has been struck down with a strong case of flu.

Nov 10, 2009 7:02:09 AM

Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon has missed his appointment with the squad at the Borghesiana training centre in Rome with flu.

According to Sky Sport Italia, the Juventus custodian has fallen victim to a strong bout of influenza, and failed to turn up to the Giro Azzurro this afternoon. Like the rest of the squad, Buffon was scheduled to arrive at 13:00CET, but it is said he has stayed at home.

He has now been given a time frame of two days to recover. If that fails, then Marcello Lippi is likely to call up Genoa goalkeeper Marco Amelia to take his place. The rest of the players arrived on time. Giuseppe Rossi was the other absentee. He has permission to join on Wednesday.

New Italy debutant Davide Biondini arrived alongside Lippi. A press conference involving Antonio Di Natale and Lippi will follow before the first training session takes place at around 15:30CET.

La Nazionale clash with the Netherlands in a friendly on Saturday followed by Sweden next Wednesday.

Salvatore Landolina, Goal.com

Cissiboy

11-11-2009, 09:25 AM

this one of Buffon seems to be a diplomatic flu ehehhe...better for us..

His knee needs to go under surgery..these 2 friendly games no one will give a sheep for..no need to risk imho

dreamer75

16-11-2009, 09:10 PM

Italy 0-0 Netherlands: Italians Held To Scoreless Draw

The Squadra Azzurri were held to a draw by the Oranje in a far from entertaining game.
Nov 14, 2009 4:39:44 PM

Italy and Netherlands were both far from impressive in Pescara and had to settle for a goalless draw in Saturday's international friendly.

The first chance of the game was for the Italians after seven minutes of play. Gilardino was found unmarked as he broke the offside trap, but he couldn't get into a good position and his final shot hit the outside of the net.

Netherlands dominated play and Liverpool striker Dirk Kuyt came close to opening the score after about 20 minutes. The former Feyenoord star got the ball in a dangerous position and tried his luck from the edge of the area. However, Kuyt aimed just wide and the chance went begging.

Debutant Antonio Candreva dribbles past Van Bommel after a corner kick for the Azzurri before he fired a shot on goal that went wide of the Dutch goal.

Genoa winger Raffaele Palladino took a nice shot on goal from the edge of the area after some sustained pressure from the Azzurri halfway the first half only to see his shot comfortably saved by Holland shot stopper Maarten Stekelenburg.

The Oranje got a free kick in a dangerous position about ten minutes before the half-time whistle and Real Madrid midfielder Rafael van der Vaart stepped up to take it. His shot deflected off the head of Palladino, but Gianluigi Buffon was alert and prevented the opener.

The hosts got a huge chance to break the deadlock five minutes later. A corner kick by Pirlo found Palladino alone in the area, but his touch from close range somehow went over the bar.

Holland started the second half the better side of the two and could have opened the score after 52 minutes. Van Der Vaart beat his man and played a great pass for Nigel de Jong, who tried a volley from the edge of the area. Nevertheless, his powerful shot was deflected out.

Grosso was found in acres of space on the left wing at the hour mark before he sent in a good cross from Mauro Camoranesi. Nevertheless, the Juventus man failed to get his shot on target and the score remained blank.

John Heitinga could have added his name to the score sheet halfway the second half after a corner kick, but the Everton stopper aimed his header too high and squandered the chance.

Italy scored ten minutes before the final whistle after a goalmouth scramble following a cross by Pirlo from the right. However, Pazzini's final touch was with his hand and the goal didn't stand.

Domenico Criscito played a good long pass for Giuseppe Rossi in the dying minutes of the game. The Villarreal star tried to round the keeper but he got into an impossible position and the ball went out.

Stefan Coerts, Goal.com