Nedved wanted to be there to help encourage his former team-mates ahead of the Champions League showdown with Bayern Munich, which takes place in Germany on Wednesday.

‘Furia Ceca’ wasn’t in Turin just for some back slapping, though.

According to Tuttosport, he was there to rub shoulders with the club’s directors, whose offer of a coaching role is still open. The report suggests Nedved considered the proposal while on holiday during the summer, though there is no comment as to what his thinking is.

goal.com

 IERI… OGGI… DOMANI… SEMPRE JUVE!!!

“I am happy with the two goals and the victory. We played a great match. It is thanks to the Juventus environment, to Ferrara, to my team mates, to the affection of the fans. It is thanks to all this that I managed to fit in well. The strength of Juve is this: the capability of players of great class to adapt to a scheme and to sacrifice themselves if necessary.” -Diego Ribas da Cunha

Just look at our tifosi back there behind those two Brazilians- I fucking love this club. Enjoy the photos everyone. Alessio’s gonna spit something out a little more comprehensive in a bit probably, but as I’m sure he can agree, some photos say it all.

IERI… OGGI… DOMANI… SEMPRE JUVE!!!

The second which surprised me a bit, was not only starting Brazzo at left-back this weekend, where he performed admirably, but subbing De Ceglie over Molinaro on at half-time when Salihamidzic came off with an injury. Molinaro’s position at left-back has been more or less secure over the last two seasons, although I would argue it is as much to Ranieri’s preference for him as much as De Ceglie’s injuries. Had PDC been able to remain uninjured for a few months on end, he could have given him competition. I was one of Molinaro’s biggest critics in 2007-2008, though last season he sort of changed my mind. He is a decent fullback, defensively sound but offensively contributes little. Is he ideal? Certainly not, but he can manage for the time being.

Over the last week, reports have been swirling that Ferrara is indeed not satisfied with the fullbacks at his disposal. This summer it appeared he was unimpressed with De Ceglie and would push him to Napoli, their interest cooled off after his injury at the U-21 euros, or De Ceglie managed to convince Ferrara of his worth. (Given his sub over Molinaro against Chievo, possibly both) Zebina may be injured for a few months, who managed to slowly work himself back in the squad, and it seems pretty apparent that Grygera is not highly appraised by Ciro. Caceres performed well at right-back in preseason, but he seems more of a defensive right-back like Mellberg than an attacking one, not that there’s anything wrong with that.

Cobolli Gigli’s comments yesterday that Juve was still considering making moves in the mercato confirms the above suspicion that Ferrara would like changes. Grosso has been re-linked back to Juve after not playing in the Europa League qualifiers for Lyon in effort to not be cup-tied, supposedly Juve wants to pay 1million euro whereas Lyon are looking for about 2.5million. Grosso would be a decent signing, he has never really done it at the highest level for club, but Inter he was only there for a season, and French football is a wacky thing in its own way. At Palermo, well, he made his way into the Nazionale. He’s aging, but I think at the club level it will be less exposed than for the Nazionale where matches are individually played at a higher intensity. A decent signing, but I am not terribly concerned with our left-back position.

The other player heavily linked is Brazilian right-back Rafinha, of Schalke for a fee of about 8million euro. As with Diego, I cannot speak personally about him as my knowledge of the Bundesliga is, well, whatever close to zero would be. You all know well about my disdain for South American footballers, but I would be satisfied with this signing.

Simply put, he passes all of my desired checks for a fullback. Is he young? Yes. Is he experienced? Yes. Is he offensively potent as well as defensively sound? According to reports on him, he is a good attacker, whereas his defense could still be refined a bit. We’ll say yes. Is he relatively cheap? Given his age, his experience, and the club he’s coming from, I would say 8mil is a very fair price. With De Silvestri definitively off the market, Juve may decide to go for one of these fullbacks, or given Grosso’s price, perhaps both.

BUT- Should they arrive, we certainly need to offload some fullbacks. We already have 3 per flank- Molinaro, De Ceglie, Brazzo, and Zebina, Grygera, and Caceres. First on my chopping block would be Zebina. Ignoring my personal disdain for him for a moment, Zebina is particularly injury-plagued, has the highest salary of the fullbacks, is old, and I don’t think that much of an improvement over the others. Molinaro and Grygera are competent reserves, should Ferrara choose to do so, with a mid-range salary, dedication, and young enough that they can serve us well for a while. Brazzo’s contract expires next summer, and I have no idea if the team has any inclination to renew it, I would imagine not. Should either of them arrive, I would imagine Ariaudo would go out on loan, because Caceres is perfectly capable at center-back. Should a right-back arrive, I think he would be shifted in position.

Am I thrilled with our current group of fullbacks? No, but a team is never as perfect as you want it. I think they are “good enough,” but should the management choose to go into the mercato, I would certainly have no complaints.

“Juve have plenty of tireless midfielders. Aggressive players who have stamina and can fight for the ball,” said Sacchi. “However, they are lacking when it comes to building up the game. Their [Juventus] ball possession has always been a weak point because there isn’t much harmony in their tempo. D’Agostino would have provided them with that. Melo is a better overall player but he seems like a stronger copy of some of their current midfielders.” C4

Personally, I think Felipe’s €25 million price tag is about €5-7 million too high. Now some of us could sit here and argue that, however the fact remains, Melo joins a long list of combative midfielders who are just slightly better than Arrigo described. While it would have been nice to sign D’Agostino for a little more “harmony in our tempo”, and truth be told he was considered ahead of the Brazilian midfielder, nonetheless Udinese wanted simply too much for their breakout 30 year old regista.

The Brazilian was presented officially during a press conference today, Wednesday 22nd July, at the Juventus Media Center in Vinovo. The conference was transmitted live on the Juventus Channel and here are some excerpts from the newest Bianconero:

“I am not scared of Inter. It is a big club but so is Juve and if we all work together I am sure we can reach great goals”. He defines his move to Juventus as a leap in quality: “I think the fact that the club did a rather big financial effort to sign me, this makes me feel good. I am happy to have reached this level and now I will work hard to win the championship and the Champions League.”

“I think it is more important to win rather then to be specatacular. I played in great teams which were spectacular but did not win anything and in others were we weren’t specatcular but we won because we were united. We must be united like a family and work as a team so as to obtain our objectives.”

“The Brazilian national team? I am now at Juventus. I will work hard for Juventus because this club must always be at the top. I will work hard and then if I do well the Brazilian national team call-up will come as it has in the past but I am a Juve player and I will work hard to be worthy.”

“We must all work hard. With or without Diego or Melo, Juve are strong and so we must work hard and be united to be as strong as possible. I can’t wait to be in the dressing rooms, speak with the other players and get to know them. I once played against Sissoko in Spain and now I am really curious to speak to him and play by his side.”

“Last year I was shown quite a few cards. It was my first year in Italy and this could have been the reason since in 4 years in Spain I only got shown one red card. Now I know the methods of the referees here in Italy and even though as a midfielder I am bound to be shown cards I will definitely be more careful and shown less cards.”

“I came here because Juventus is a club that can win anything. All we have to do is work hard. If we work hard and do so well the scudetto will be a bit closer.”

IERI… OGGI… DOMANI… SEMPRE JUVE!!!

I apologize, that was an awfully cruel way to start the post and I imagine most of you were so giddy from the headline you had texted 14-15 people, including your grandmother and ex-girlfriend about the news. Someone suggested this question on another forum, and I liked the idea.

Having signed Cannavaro and Diego for a grand total of 24.5mil, Juventus is now looking for you to complete the mercato. You have 3 signings to make, and they can be loan, co-ownership, or full-out purchases. Your budget is 20mil left, we’ll assume we raise 10mil or so in sales. Who would be your 3 signings?

A few conditions-

• Be realistic in prices, we can’t buy Xabi Alonso for anything less than 20mil.
• Remember what competitors are offering, again with Xabi Alonso…..Real is interested. That pretty much prices us out.
• We won’t play mindgames and figure out player’s preferences. Even if Onyewu probably wouldn’t want to move to Turin, it’s fair game. Even if a player is an Interista, fair game.
• The formation will likely be a 4-3-1-2.

Post your answers below!

“I am honoured by Fenerbahce’s offer… £3.7m is a lot, but to me it’s not just a question of money. I want to continue with Juventus. For me, it’s very important that my family finds itself well in the city in which I play”.

I see where you’re coming from Christian, family is number one. Unfortunately for D’Agostino, this meant that the likelihood of Juventus meeting Udinese’s €20 million price tag was next to zero. Now while I would’ve liked to see us offload one or two defensive midfielders in favour of someone with D’Agostino’s characteristics, especially ahead of our imminent switch to a 4-3-1-2 or 4-2-3-1 system, the reality is Pozzo’s demands are still a bit too high here. Kudos goes out to Poulsen for sticking to his guns and Secco as well for keeping our youth prospects far from the bargaining table.

IERI… OGGI… DOMANI… SEMPRE JUVE!!!

First of all my heart goes out to those of you who’ve been waiting awhile for this piece. Truth be told, every time I started it I got carried away watching You Tube videos of him from adoring Werder Bremen fans with everything from Tina Turner to Autobahn inspired trance soundtracks. Their admiration for this guy is truly something to behold. Finally though following alongside the post on our mercato arrivals, we now present the first official biographical post on our newest signing, Diego Ribas da Cunha.

Born on the 28th of February 1985 in Sao Paolo, the Brazilian began his career at Comercial FC Ribeirao Preto at age 5. He then moved to Paulistinha Sao Carlos before he joined FC Santos, a popular domestic outfit and the hometown club of Pele, in 1996 at the ripe age of 12. He made his first team debut four years later, and by 18 years old he wore the captain’s armband guiding his side to two Brazilian titles in 2002 and 2004. Pele later described the teenage sensation as a “worthy successor”.

Taking a jump across the pond in search of something more, Diego joined the popular Portuguese side FC Porto in 2004 for € 8 million as a replacement for the Barcelona-bound Deco. Cue the speed bump. Reports suggest the then Porto coach, Co Adriaanse, was unhappy with the defensive effort of his midfielder which eventually led Diego to lose his regular first-team place. After two years of the on again off again routine, Porto sold him to Germany’s Werder Bremen in May 2006 for only € 6 million. Talk about good career moves.

While playing in the Bundesliga under the keen eye of long time Werder Bremen player and now coach Thomas Schaaf, Diego’s potential was finally being tapped by employing him in an attacking-minded formation. Schaaf decided to give the playmaker as much of a creative role as he could handle, and the young Brazilian responded in kind. For three seasons he led the northern German side to new heights domestically and internationally including a German League Cup title, a German Cup title, and two praiseworthy runner-up performances in both the UEFA Cup and Bundesliga competitions. Bayern Munich President and German football legend, Franz Beckenbauer recently praised him as “a player who can make the crucial difference”.

Then, on the 26th of May 2009, Juventus announced that an agreement with Werder Bremen for the acquisition of the player’s rights had been finalized. The five-year contract, effective July 1st 2009, will be paid in three installments: € 14 million on 1st July 2009, € 5.5 million on 1st July 2010, and € 5 million on 1st July 2011, totaling € 24.5 million with an additional € 2.5 million in performance incentives. Finally after a two-year courtship, Die Grün-Weißen’s favorite son was now apart of our big family.

In the last two seasons our Old Lady has had her fair share of memorable performances, some worth mentioning more than others. The “others” in this case were those tormenting instances when our attack couldn’t muster enough creativity through the middle when we desperately needed to. In fact, during Ranieri’s tenure we were practically toothless in that respect. Now with the addition of Diego, our side can finally boast about a “crucial difference” in our opponent’s final third again.

What excites me about him as a player is his hunger for the ball and his physical presence while on it. From the dozen or so Werder Bremen games I’ve watched, ever since rumours of Juventus’ interest in him began two years ago, he consistently displayed a unique attacking talent for the game. While employing the same flair and technique one would expect from an attacking midfielder born in Brazil, Diego exhibits an unusually large sense of strength and determination most of his countrymen typically don’t share.

As a result, adjusting to Italian football shouldn’t be a problem (ahem, Tiago), especially after Ferrara’s already confirmed we’ll be employing a system similar to the one Diego enjoyed in Germany. “Diego will be accommodated with a different system to the one used in the last two years, but it would be wrong to build a team around him. He is a great champion, but the individual must be at Juve’s disposal. After all, if Diego is missing then we cannot be without a Plan B. It will be a 4-3-1-2 system, but that can be changed to 4-3-2-1 or 4-2-3-1 depending on the circumstances. With the characteristics of the players we have right now, I’d say 4-3-1-2 is the best solution.”

With so many talented youngsters ready to make their impressions with Juventus on the highest of stages, the future of our club has never looked brighter. Next season we’ll be ushering in a new era of football, one year before the completion of the Delle Alpi re-construction. Therefore along with a brand new stadium all of Europe can envy, we’ll have a style of play that’ll be sought after just the same.

IERI… OGGI… DOMANI… SEMPRE JUVE!!!

What a stupid move.

Sure, it’s pure profit, considering we picked him up on a free transfer last season, but it is a short-sighted move by the management. Mellberg was a reserve, nothing more, but never complained about his role in the team, so I doubt it was a case of limited playing time especially with the arrival of Cannamerda. Rather, the management saw a chance to cash in and sell him off. (This could be a brilliant business, signing Bosmans and selling them later for profit. As long as the fee is bigger than their salary, it works)

Why is this dumb? Aside from his good character, he put in decent performances. There’s 3 defenders that on performance alone should be out the door before Olof does. A great display in big games against Real and Roma, though some iffy displays against mid-table and weaker decides. Here is his player rating for the season from a few weeks ago:

OLOF “The Beard” MELLBERG- 6: I thought it was great to compare him to Loria, who Roma actually spent money on. It makes me feel a lot better about his transfer. Against Real Madrid, Roma, and other big games, Mellberg played wonderfully, making crucial tackles and generally being dominant in the air. Against the lower, weaker teams, he was schooled. A good reserve, but no one is suggesting he take a starting place anymore, unless perhaps at right-back. At right-back he is not as adventrous as Grygera or Zebina, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. There are rumors of Olympiakos offering 3million euros for him. No dice, it would cost much more to get an equally capable replacement.

Where are we going to get a new capable central defender who costs 2-3million euros? There’s four options:
#1- Bosmans- like Cannamerda this season or Olof himself last season. But Bosmans generally are coming from a foreign league, (difficulties adjusting) are older, and in general are going to be hit or miss.
#2- Very young, very cheap talent- Generally we send them on loan to get playing time, so it would kind of be counterproductive.
#3- Bargain bin deals- Like Loria, or some other crappy defender, who are very cheap. Then pray to God he turns a new leaf.
#4- Loans- Like Senderos or He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named, it’s a short-term cover option with a wide range of results.

None sound as good as “retaining a seasoned unselfish veteran with proven leadership and adequate defensive ability.” And no…Chiellini, Legrottaglie, Cannamerda, and Ariaudo are not sufficient cover for center-back.

It’s a poor decision as I’d rather have let his contract run out, but not one I’m going to lose sleep over. Olof, we enjoyed your brief stay in Turin and wish you nothing but the best in Greece.

But what seemed what would be a relatively short negotiation for Gaetano D’Agostino, the regista extraordinaire of Udinese Calcio over the last season, has started to become drawn out. Udinese know what they are sitting on, and they won’t let him go for cheap. Frankly, I am surprised at how little we bought Iaquinta for, I forget constantly that he joined us for only €11million, a bargain that frankly makes Amauri look vastly overpaid. Udinese won’t doing that again.

The current rumor is that Udinese is demanding one of Juve’s youth crown jewels (Marchisio, Giovinco, De Ceglie) in exchange for D’Agostino, of course alongside a hefty chunk of change. Udinese’s president has rated him at €30million. Obviously, this is a ludicrous number and no sane person would pay that much, Pozzo himself knows he isn’t worth anywhere near that. A traditional negotiating tactic, that’s all. Juve have the cash, but Ferrara, Secco, and Blanc are loathe to part with one of our future stars, and Udinese is playing hardball in demanding a youth product, and rightly so. This is a team that has played exciting attacking football over the last several years, but more importantly, has been a selling club. They’ve lost numerous stars, but managed to replace them, largely due to their great scouting network and willingness to trade established players for young starlets.

Why We Need D’Agostino:Gaetano would add a dimension to our team that has been missing since our promotion back from Serie A, and that, quite simply, is a talented passer in midfield. Sissoko is certainly not, and Marchisio and Zanetti are decent passers but we have not had a maestro in midfield. Pre-Serie B oftentimes we didn’t need one, with our wingers still young and brilliant forwards (we still have them), the central-midfield could be largely ballwinners. With a likely switch to a 4-3-1-2 on the cards, we need someone in midfield who can get the ball up to the forwards and create spaces with his vision. We can’t rely on a trequartista always, ignoring Diego’s possibility of flopping or the inevitiability spell of poor form, if he is marked heavily in a game that would destroy our offense and we’d have to resort to long balls or (gasp), our fullbacks. You could easily see it with Milan, if a team marked Kaka well, (with Pirlo in mediocre form or injured) the entire team was bogged down. He would fit in very well in a 3-man midfield, one with a center-mid, a ball winner, and a regista. Sissoko-D’Agostino-Marchisio, is how I imagine it. That sounds disgustingly good.

D’Agostino has proven in his brief time as a regista that has possesses the character (ahem, Tiago) and the technical qualities (ahem, Sissoko) to be a world-class distributor in our midfield. Many have agreed that he was by far one of Serie A’s top performers and in general, better than Pirlo over the last season. He would be a great addition to the squad simply because of his ability on the ball, but he’s also has better defensive skills than Pirlo. He’s not the player that is going to go flying suicidally into a Sissoko-style slide-tackle, but he can make challenges and just as important, pressure opponents when the midfield is playing defense. Also…have you seen his set pieces?!

Showing the master how to play defense

Why D’Agostino over other targets: Probably the biggest comment brought up by doubters is his lack of experience, a “one-season wonder,” perhaps. This is a fair question, but unfortunately there is no way I can reassure you otherwise; he has only been used as a regista during the past season under Pasquale Marino, having grown up as a trequartista like Giovinco. (Back in the youth teams, Marchisio used to play in the hole or as a supporting striker as a side note) So there really isn’t a mountain of evidence to prove he can cut it at a big club. Like Milan did with Pirlo, we may just have to take a chance, though clearly his best position has been found already.

When you consider some of the other midfielders linked with the club that would fill the 3-man midfield, whether in the regista position or not, it makes D’Agostino look even better. I’ve never been very impressed by Elano, he’s a good player but is too inconsistent and his position is more offensive than we need. Plus, his agent is Antonio Caliendo and I would snub Elano just so I’d never have to hear that slimeball talk. Diarra is unnecessary, as we already have 3 defensive midfielders and he’s coming off a season-long injury. Ledesma would be a cheaper, Serie A option, but he has not convinced me as much as D’Agostino has. The first two players would be a gamble as much as D’Agostino is, but he has two things they do not. First, of course, he is coming from a Serie A club so there would be no difficulty in adapting to the league or of course, the language. And second, born and raised in Palermo, it is not surprising that D’Agostino is a lifelong Juventus fan, and continues to be so today. One of Poulsen and Tiago’s biggest faults is sometimes they seemingly just don’t care enough; the club is in Gaetano’s heart, it is unlikely we would see that same issue.

But at what cost: As I started the piece with, this is what is holding up the deal. D’Agostino, his agent, the Udinese President, and Udinese transfer director have all confirmed that the 27-year old wants to join Juventus. In many cases including the Udinese administration, they have stated that it will happen. As mentioned, Udinese wants a starlet. Giovinco and Marchisio are clearly unsellable, though the same cannot be said about Paolo De Ceglie. With Dossena, Grosso, or hopefully Criscito on the return, PDC’s playing time will be limited especially given that we will generally not be using wingers, though his crossing ability as a fullback would be missed. There’s been plenty of rumors that Ferrara does not rate De Ceglie right now and he will be sold (either in full or co-ownership) to Napoli. I don’t understand why we wouldn’t throw him into the D’Agostino deal instead, Udinese has expressed interest.

(You know how YouTube replaces music on some videos if it detects copyright infringement? Why can’t you do that normally, or just as good, mute it by default?)

Udinese will want a good chunk of change too, but we can bring this further down by offering the full ownership of Michele Paolucci, who Udinese currently co-owns as part of the deal to bring Iaquinta to Turin. As we’ve said a dozen times, Juve has plenty of quality up top and with the exception of Del Piero, every striker has easily 4 years left in him. There will be no room at Juve for Paolucci unfortunately, but Udinese could certainly use him with the departure of Fabio Quagliarella to Napoli. The team has young guns like Sanchez, Floro Flores, and of course the prince of Udinese, Di Natale, but Paolucci scored a respectable 7 games in 20 starts on loan at Catania this season.

With the co-ownership of De Ceglie and Paolucci (probably about €4mil each), I would estimate we would pay about €6-8million in cash to Udinese, probably spread over at least 2 seasons. A reasonable deal, if it does indeed go through. Of course, it depends on a lot of factors; will we will spill out for a fullback? If we fail to, will Ferrara decide De Ceglie unsellable? Will Catania try and purchase Paolucci’s contract as they have expressed interest? Will Udinese go for Marchisio or Giovinco or be content with De Ceglie? The negotiations will probably go on for a while, as Secco likely will look at alternatives. I hope he does not give up as he did with Xabi Alonso, it seems pretty clear that failing to follow through on Xabi was a big mistake. D’Agostino and Udinese want to make this deal happen. Get it done, Secco.

(1:20)

KEEPERS

7.5: Aside from a bit of an error on a (wrongly) disallowed goal against Gilardino, Buffon made no mistakes, as we’ve come to expect. He has made some solid saves, but has not been on the same level as previous years. The last two seasons he’s missed nearly 3-4 months due to injury, something that has surprisingly not really hurt our team. Perhaps remaining healthy will bring him back to his superhuman form, as of now, I would give the best keeper award to Julio Cesar, much as it pains me to say it. Seeing his reactions against Lecce when the season was quickly going down the toilet was even more painful.
BEST MOMENT: There have been some “great” saves, but unlike last year not any particularly “world-class” ones. I’ll give it to his save against Cagliari on Biondi.

ALEX MANNINGER- 6.5: Brilliant piece of work by Secco, given Buffon’s injury problems and the absurdly low price. A better keeper than probably all save 2-3 of the starters in Serie A, Manninger held down the fort during Gigi’s absence. No stunning saves, and he made a few “small” errors against Inter and Lazio but in general he was steady, consistent, and a reassuring presence at the back, which is all you can ask for from a backup keeper. On Football Manager, Manninger demanded playing time and eventually went to Roma to fulfill it. Luckily in real life, Alex understands his role and is fine with it.
BEST MOMENT: Juventus 4-2 Milan. Conceding two at home might not seem like a good game, but it was a deflected shot and a tap-in he could do nothing about. Aside from that, looked confident and was not troubled by Milan at all.

ANTONIO CHIMENTI- N/R: Thrown in to sweeten the Manninger deal along with the Belardi loan, he is the team’s muppet.
Best Moment: Never setting a foot on the pitch.

DEFENDERS:

GIORGIO CHIELLINI- 8: Not quite as good as last season and looked uncharacteristically nervy in some games, but as a whole, Giorgio was still a colossus this season. The steel and grit he provides in the back is crucial to the team. Continued his rock-solid partnership with Legrottaglie until the end of the season when injury and suspension pulled the duo apart; not surprisingly, the team started conceding plenty. I still don’t know if he was sent off for dissent or a poor refereeing call against Chelsea. Future captain of Juventus and the Azzurri.
BEST MOMENT: He’s scored a good amount of goals this season, but his header against the Toro brought us local bragging rights, 3 points, and furthered the Granata’s relegation.

NICOLA LEGROTTAGLIE- 7.5: A very good campaign from the former winner of the dubious bidone d’oro prize. Alongside Chiellini, the duo had the best defensive record in Serie A until the end of the season. Like Chiellini, he is not quite the same when playing without his partner. Still a bit vulnerable on the counter-attack, but with Giorgio’s pace by his side, it is generally not a problem. Deservedly called back into the Nazionale and could be going to WC2010.
BEST MOMENT: Against a team like Atalanta, Juve often had trouble finding the motivation. Atlanta has a dangerous attack with Floccari and Doni, but in the andata in Bergamo, Legrottaglie organized the defense wonderfully and the less-evil Nerazzurri barely had a sniff on goal.

CRISTIAN MOLINARO- 6.5: If you look at my player ratings from last season, I gave him a 4.5 and hoped for his departure. He has upped his game significantly the season, and always gives his all, playing the most minutes of any Juventus player this season. Defensively he has developed into a reliable left-back, and I can honestly say when he was up against Robben and Malouda, I was not panicking. He did well to contain the both, which is not easy. I’d give him a 6.5 or possibly even a 7, but he is still woefully lacking in the offensive department. Please, someone teach him to cross!
BEST MOMENT: Containing Robben very well in both Champion’s League games, to the point that Schuster switched Robben to the other flank to try and attack Grygera/Salihamidzic, or defending against Balotelli perfectly in Juventus-Inter.

ZDENEK GRYGERA- 5.5: I’ve always liked Grygera, but towards the tail end of the season it has been painfully obvious he is not the caliber of player to man our right flank. He’s been caught out of position and responsible for several goals. Last season he started out poorly but grew steadily into his role, but sadly has not really continued this growth. If only Criscito was right-footed…
BEST MOMENT: He’s not as defensively sound as Molinaro, but he provides more up front. Without a doubt this goes to his goal against Inter at home, in stoppage time, that allowed us to save face.

PAOLO DE CEGLIE- 5.5: I maintain PDC should be played at left-mid instead of left-back, where his pace and crossing ability are even more useful. Until the end of the season, as a left-back, his defending was pretty mediocre. A run out of games could give him the confidence and experience to become a great left-back though. He gets his own rating as a midfielder.
BEST MOMENT: In the Pro Bowl of the Serie A, the Coppa Italia, PDC pulled a Sean Taylor, refusing to give in to the nature of the glorified friendly. Except he managed to take himself out with a crunching tackle against Napoli.

HASAN SALIHAMIDZIC- 5.5: In the games he’s played at right-back, he’s offered the same thing we expect from Brazzo. Nothing flashy, nothing fancy, but hard work and consistent mediocrity, which for a reserve defender is not a bad thing. Was injured for too much of the season, though. Like PDC, he gets a separate rating as a midfielder.
BEST MOMENT: Mr. Versatility allowing us to sub a midfielder for a defender and still be balanced.

JONATHAN ZEBINA- 6: The exact opposite of Grygera in that I’ve never liked him nor particularly rated him. Neither did Ranieri. Was out all the beginning of the season with a thigh injury, but has grudgingly earned some respect from me with his performances towards the end of the season. Is he a better right-back than Grygera right now? I would say that’s true.
BEST MOMENT: Not conceding 2-3 penalties, not being sent off, and not slapping a cameraman in his first game of the season. That’ll do.

LORENZO ARIAUDO-6: Didn’t exactly pull a Motta or a Santon, but slowly brought into the team by Ranieri in the Coppa and eventually used in Serie A. When he played, he did not look very nervous, which he credited Legrottaglie’s presence and instruction for. One for the future, the question is, loan him for experience, or keep him as a reserve? He has the capability to play well as a reserve or in rotation, but it might deprive him of vital playing time. If he goes out, he definitely should go to a Serie A squad.
BEST MOMENT: I’ll go with his debut in general. He looked pretty good out there given his age and confirmed our youth academy is producing some great talent.

OLOF “The Beard” MELLBERG- 6: I thought it was great to compare him to Loria, who Roma actually spent money on. It makes me feel a lot better about his transfer. Against Real Madrid, Roma, and other big games, Mellberg played wonderfully, making crucial tackles and generally being dominant in the air. Against the lower, weaker teams, he was schooled. A good reserve, but no one is suggesting he take a starting place anymore, unless perhaps at right-back. At right-back he is not as adventrous as Grygera or Zebina, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. There are rumors of Olympiakos offering 3million euros for him. No dice, it would cost much more to get an equally capable replacement.
BEST MOMENT: He’s a reserve, unless we are playing in the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. There he should automatically be guaranteed a starting shirt.

DARIO KNEZEVIC- 2.5: He gets a bad enough rating for his awful performance(s), but also, he was brought in as cover, yet managed to be injured nearly all season, taking a cue from ex-Juventino Jorge Andrade. Brilliant defending such as in the Napoli game where he inexplicably decided to try and an audacious clearance despite no pressure…giving the ball to an unmarked Lavezzi. Even when he was healthy towards the end of the season, Ranieri chose Ariaudo over him. Thank God we only brought him in on loan, he is on the first bus back to Livorno.
BEST MOMENT: Snapping his knee so he wasn’t even an option. I’d rather play Grygera or De Ceglie as center-back.

JORGE ANDRADE- 0: We spent 4.5million euros per game on this guy. I don’t blame him, I blame Agricola. This is the stuff he should be failing. We nabbed him instead of Gabriel Milito much in the way we got Poulsen instead of Xabi Alonso. It does comfort me to see Milito out for the last year with a knee injury.
BEST MOMENT: Tearing up his contract.

MIDFIELD

MOMO SISSOKO- 7: Momo came under a bit of criticism as the season went on for his propensity to win the ball and turn it right back over, but was a titan in the midfield for the first half of the season. Great performances against Real where he never stopped running, constantly pressuring the other midfield and forcing them to abandon Guti as a playmaker and stick to the wings. Broke his foot after being played too soon after injury, and in some games we missed his energetic presence in midfield.
BEST MOMENT: His goal against Palermo, where Sissokodinho actually worked.

CLAUDIO MARCHISIO- 7.5: I would argue jointly with Nedved, he was our best midfielder this season. Early injuries to Zanetti and Poulsen moved him up the pecking order, and give credit to Ranieri for playing him early in the season over Tiago. (though I will never understand why Ranieri chose Tiago over him for the game at Stamford Bridge) Energetic, young, Italian, and from Turin, it can’t get better. Shows great confidence and maturity for his age, positioning himself very well. As the season has moved on, he’s started to display a bit of goalscoring ability, which, with a bit of training I’m sure he could be great at. Should have been called up over a few players for Lippi’s most recent Nazionale squad, but Lippi probably wanted to leave him to the u-21 team.
BEST MOMENT: Hard to decide, as a whole performance, the 4-2 win over Milan was brilliant, he was all over in midfield distributing balls, winning them back, dribbling through the Milan midfield and unleashing some screamers. For a single moment, his goal against Fiorentina. Followed a genius Del Piero assist through and calmly chipped one of the best Serie A keepers. With the confidence and ease in which he did it, you would have never known it was his first professional goal.

CRISTIANO ZANETTI- 6.5: I docked him a little bit because of his never-ending injury struggles, those thigh strains really are a killer. But since his return from injury, he’s shown us what we’ve been missing. An engine in midfield, pressuring the other team well and winning balls back, he also is a quite good passer of the ball. It’s that combination that neither Tiago nor Sissoko have. He will be an important part of next season if he can stay healthy.
BEST MOMENT: His wonder-volley against Atalanta, possibly the Juventus goal of the season.

TIAGO- 6.5: Tiago, Tiago, Tiago……I can’t make up my mind on you. The Portuguese midfielder put in some very good performances this season and had more or less won a starting spot before he got injured for 2-3 months, but alternated that with some utterly average ones. I do like he’s showing more emotion and a real commitment to the Juventus cause, but the jury is still out on this one.
BEST MOMENT: Flattening Balotelli. No really, I’m serious.

PAVEL NEDVED- 8: The Czech warhorse had a great season, providing plenty of assists and becoming the highest scorer among non-strikers. Played well even though he was abused with 180min week-in-week-out by Ranieri. When played as a center-midfielder, was excellent and I think we should have moved him there and prolonged his career. It seems he had made up his mind to retire in the last month, despite not annonuncing it until the day before, because he played like a man possessed. Never won the cup with the big ‘ole ears, but certainly deserved to. Enjoy retirement, Pavel.
BEST MOMENT: That wonderful volley against his personal punching bag, ASS Roma, seconds after entering the game.

MAURO CAMORANESI- 7.5: Sigh…..when Mauro plays, he’s magic. Unfortunately over the course of the last two years, that “when” is becoming more and more rare. Only was fit enough to start in 1/3rd of Serie A games this season, his presence has been missed. We need to hire some Asian massueses on-call 24/7 for this guy, we can split them with Zanetti, Zebina, and all the other players that got nasty thigh strains this season.
BEST MOMENT: Soldiering through a dislocated shoulder against Reggina for the first half, and scoring a nice goal in the process.

CHRISTIAN POULSEN- 4.5: Everyone I’ve talked to in Spain has crowed about Poulsen, saying he was arguably one of the best midfielders in La Liga during his two year spell. Given the talent in this league, that’s no small compliment. Similarly, people have told me about his success when at Schalke. But he hasn’t reproduced that form at Juventus. To be fair to Poulsen, he was A. Coming under the impression as a vice-Xabi Alonso, when he is in fact a reserve to Zanetti. And B. He’s dealt with injuries all season and has been unable to get a decent run out. But in the few games he’s played, he hasn’t stamped his authority on the pitch. Christian hasn’t been awful, but has really made zero impact either. I’m not entirely ready to give up on him, yet, it seems quite clear from his play that his confidence is completely shot. Maybe it’s because we greeted him by calling him a “rubbish player.” Maybe it’s because he was quickly moved to 3rd-string. Whatever the reason is, let’s hope he can sort it out. He’s a good player and has plenty to offer Juventus.
BEST MOMENT: Dumb-luck goal against Catania in stoppage time after a whiff of a clearance from one of their defenders, a simple tap-in but was so significant in reviving Juve’s form.

HASAN SALIHAMIDZIC- 6.5: As stated in his defender rating, Brazzo, as many of our players, has been plagued with injuries all season, and thus unable to produce his best form. In the brief time he was healthy, he played 2 sensational games that made me wonder why he cannot play more often like that.
BEST MOMENT: His game (sorry for music…eh) in the 4-1 thrashing of Bologna. Brazzo was wonderfully dangerous and created plenty of great opportunities for the forwards and scored a very intelligent goal.

MARCO MARCHIONNI- 5.5: Infuriatingly inconsistent, that’s the best way to describe his season. When we signed him on a free transfer from Parma, he was one of the best wingers in Italy. Injuries and a lack of playing time have certainly limited his explosiveness. (Side note, if I told you last August we would have our most injury-plagued season in 5-6 seasons, which one of you would have predicted Marco would have remained healthy? Yeah, keep your hands down.) In general he provides good delivery and decent defensive cover, but he is in average match fitness, has a far too heavy touch, and sometimes drifts out of the game for long periods. I don’t think we should sell him if we are going to keep with a winged 4-4-2 formation as he is a good reserve to an often injured player. But Marco has not seized his opportunities when given.
BEST MOMENT: Nearly completely changed the game with a great turn and long strike against Chelsea in London. Certainly not his best moment, but unfortunately I will remember his season for his heavy touches against Inter and Milan that could have killed the game…he was lucky against Roma that Riise left him completely unchallenged in similar circumstances.

SEBASTIAN GIOVINCO- 7.5: Instead of the “Magic Fairytale of the Atomic Ant” perhaps he could write a book “How SuperSeba was criminally underused in 2008-2009.” As many of you know, I generally supported Ranieri, but one of my main sticking points was why he didn’t play Giovinco a lot. I still don’t understand it. I can see concerns about his physical strength and being able to hold up the wings, but in every game after the first few months, Giovinco had a massive impact when playing. The only game I remember where he was average after November or so was the 2nd derby against Toro. He’s obviously has no Cassanata issues, and everytime he played, we played better. I would love for someone to ask Ranieri and get an honest answer, I don’t think it’s that he had any personal beef against him or anything, Ranieri and Giovinco are both nice guys. The last thing I will say is that many attacking Ranieri for not playing Giovinco enough, a fair criticism, but many extended that to complaining Ranieri wasn’t giving our youth a chance. In the last two years, Criscito, Nocerino, Chiellini, Molinaro, De Ceglie, Marchisio, and Sissoko, all young players got solid runs out. Some cut it, some haven’t.
BEST MOMENT Either his 1v1 with Del Piero against Catania in the Coppa where there was a wonderful teacher-student embrace, or his goal against Lecce where he whipped in a free kick quite obviously with instruction from the master.

PAOLO DE CEGLIE- 7: Everytime De Ceglie played at left-mid, which was not often enough, he tore the other team apart. Given his pace and his excellent crossing, he provided fantastic service for the center-forwards. I’d like to see him play up there more, I think he could be a better winger than fullback, and Italy could really use a left-winger, we haven’t had one in ages.
BEST MOMENT: The 4-2 Milan demolition derby where PDC tore apart Milan’s right-flank, getting Zambrotta sent off and providing a perfect cross for a beastly Amauri header to give Juventus the lead. Close 2nd his cross against Lecce, came on as a substititute late on, and his first touch of the ball is an inch perfect cross again for Amauri who bangs it in late in the game to give Juventus the win, 2-1.

FORWARDS

ALESSANDRO DEL PIERO- 7: Del Piero has really fallen off since Christmas time, like Amauri, but that shouldn’t make us forget his unbelievable start to the season. Match-winning goal after match-winning goal, splendid free kicks, and a goal against Zenit, and 3 against Real Madrid to singlehandedly give us the group win. One of the best assists I’ve seen to Marchisio against Fiorentina, but other than that, he’s been hot-or-cold. Needs to refind his shooting boots.
BEST MOMENT: Tough call…but I’m going to go with Del Piero’s first goal against Real Madrid. Good long direct ball from Marchisio to Del Piero who dummies for Amauri. Amauri then turns and passes it back to Del Piero…with Casillsa coming a bit out of the goal and Blanco defenders hot on, Del Piero skewed pace for class. Top right corner, Casillas no chance. That was the shot heard round the world. Juve is back in the Champion’s League, baby.

AMAURI- 7: Like Del Piero, Amauri has fallen way off the pace from his terrific start to his Juventus career. In the fall Amauri was singlehandedly saving our season, scoring something obscene like 11 goals in 17 games. Powerful in the air, skilled with the volley, he’s a class forward. If only we could figure out what the hell stopped that dynamic duo. With Diego, Giovinco, Marchisio, Criscito, Camoranesi, and perhaps D’Agostino, he should get some mouthwatering service.
BEST MOMENT: Doppietta against Milan. Brazilians can samba too, Dinho.

VINCENZO IAQUINTA- 7: Yes, I’m aware I gave them all 7s, but I think it fits for the importance they each played in the campaign, with minus a few points for inconsistentcy. Iaquinta is the direct opposite of what happened to Amauri and Del Piero, he struggled for playing time in the first half of the season and had niggling injuries preventing him from expressing his best form. There were strong rumors that Roma or Zenit wanted him in January, but the Calabrian Cannon never wavered in his faith to the bianconeri. Once he shook the injuries…..well, he’s been Serie A’s form striker for the last 2-3 months or so. Let’s hope he can keep this form going for the Confederation’s Cup and then next season. After waiting his time on the bench, Juve has repaid his faith with a contract extension until 2013. Bravo, Vincenzo!
BEST MOMENT: Probably his goal against Milan, (see a trend here?) where he used all of his force to hold off Flamini, who was having a good game himself, and got himself in the right position to head it into the net. Vincenzo di forza!

DAVID TREZEGUET- 4: The player does not deserve the criticism for most of the rating, but the only “untouchable” of Ranieri’s 2007-2008 team has been anything but this season. After undergoing double-knee surgery to prolong his career 4-5 years, David has never really been given a run out in the team, particularly after his poorly-timed outburst against Ranieri following his substitution against Chelsea. His poaching instinct is still there, he just needs to get a few games out. Obviously there have been very strong links to his departure, but one would hope with Ranieri gone, Trez will decide to stay. I think this’ll be summer #6 of massive rumors about Trez leaving. The management’s words have hardly helped things, either.
BEST MOMENT: There’s been few…so I guess his goal against Palermo assisted by Amauri will have to suffice.

MANAGEMENT:

CLAUDIO RANIERI- 6: He had to go at the end of the season, no doubt, but with some average players in the squad (Poulsen, Tiago) and a hell of an injury crisis, he managed to do pretty well. In March, we were in the Coppa semis, 2nd place within striking distance of Inter, and the Champion’s League round-of-16. Then it all came apart, quickly. My chief complaints with him was the way he never seemed to get pissed about poor performances, and some of his strange team selections, ie- not enough tinkering/rotating, and not playing Giovinco. Give him some credit for giving Marchisio a very good run out.

ALESSIO SECCO- 6: Amauri, Giovinco, Marchisio, Manninger, good. Mellberg, De Ceglie, average. Knezevic, Chimenti, Poulsen, fail.