Bleacher Report - Juventus

Juventus Summer Transfer News: Tracking Latest Rumours, Updates

Jack Alexandros Rathborn — Mon, 20 May 2013 21:14:50 -0400

Juventus secured a second successive scudetto in Serie A and enjoyed a great return to the Champions League that ended with defeat in the quarter-finals to Champions League finalists Bayern Munich.

With a formidable defence and an elite midfield, Juve know exactly where they need to strengthen this summer and that means bad news for Mirko Vucinic, Alessandro Matri, Fabio Quagliarella, Sebastian Giovinco, Nicolas Anelka and Nicklas Bendtner—these forwards collectively failed to give the Bianconeri enough in the final third.

Fernando Llorente will join the Old Lady on a free transfer from Athletic Bilbao and this will immediately upgrade Juve's attack with an added dimension. The 27-year-old will offer strength, power and an aerial presence, luxuries that Antonio Conte could rarely count on this season.

Juventini will expect plenty more additions to the squad, though, so click "Begin Slideshow" for a roundup of all the latest rumours involving Juventus transfers, and be sure to come back regularly for more updates.

----LAST UPDATE: MONDAY, MAY 20----

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Why Juventus Will Win Serie A Next Season

Jack Alexandros Rathborn — Thu, 16 May 2013 19:43:43 -0400

Serie A is almost over for another season, and many clubs have already turned their attention towards the 2013/14 season.

Juventus will look to win a third successive title, which will be massively significant when you consider that even the FIGC would have to acknowledge that the Bianconeri have won 30 Scudetti—and therefore earn a third star on their shirt.

This would be a feat that the Old Lady have only managed once before, when the Bianconeri won five successive Scudetti in the '30s.

It appears as if there will be a plenty of contenders, though, with Roma's American project continuing to gather pace, Milan now led by Mario Balotelli, Napoli potentially benefiting from a deal for Edinson Cavani, and an Inter side that continues to assemble talent, despite being in transition.

But ultimately, despite the endeavours of those teams looking to catch Juve, I feel that the champions will have too much once again—and here's why.

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Will Juventus Need to Change Tactics When Andrea Pirlo Retires?

Matteo Bonetti — Wed, 15 May 2013 12:43:12 -0400

As cliche as it may sound, Andrea Pirlo truly is the clock that keeps Juventus ticking.

Ever since he joined the Bianconeri two seasons ago after plying his trade for a decade with AC Milan, Pirlo has had a sort of rebirth.

He has spearheaded Juventus to two consecutive Scudetti in Serie A and a near-historic 49-match undefeated streak.

Pirlo has played an integral part in both the Juve midfield and on Cesare Prandelli's Italian national team. However, it's time for La Vecchia Signora to plan life without the services of "The Architect."

According to Alessandro Gozzina of La Gazzetta dello Sport, Andrea Pirlo may reunite himself with Carlo Ancelotti if he coaches Real Madrid next season.

It would be a dramatic turn of events for a player who is turning 34 years old on May 19th.

The question now turns to Juventus: What will they do once Andrea Pirlo leaves?

Interestingly enough, they could easily not do anything. Without Pirlo, they could field a world-class three-man midfield of Paul Pogba, Arturo Vidal and Claudio Marchisio.

The player who matches Pirlo's qualities the best is current PSG midifelder Marco Verratti, but there's no need for Juventus to find an ideal replacement when they have someone of Paul Pogba's ilk right under their noses.

Pogba is a modern box-to-box midfielder who can do a bit of everything. He has a cannon shot from outside the area and the necessary vision to create for teammates while also tracking back to defend.

There's no reason for Juventus to even change their vaunted 3-5-2 formation, as it fits the rest of their players perfectly. As a matter of fact, a player like Pogba is perfect for a competition like the Champions League, where the stereotypically slow midfield maestro is slowly getting phased out.

Aside from this, creative midfielder Andrea Poli will join the team this summer from Sampdoria. He's another one who could give an offensive spark to a Pirlo-less midfield.

In the end, there's no reason for Juventini to panic and think that their team needs to find a suitable replacement. He's on the team already, and his name is Paul Pogba.

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What Next for Juventus Coach Antonio Conte?

Jack Alexandros Rathborn — Mon, 13 May 2013 20:07:16 -0400

Antonio Conte has enjoyed a splendid start to his career as Juventus manager.

The 43-year-old has collected back-to-back scudetti and has done so with an original style that has pleased Juventini.

It is fair to say that the Bianconeri have mastered the three centre-back defence best across Europe, and it has been their defensive organisation that has been the bedrock for this side's success.

Giorgio Chiellini, Leonardo Bonucci and Andrea Barzagli collectively have everything required in a defence, and with Gianluigi Buffon between the sticks, there is an argument that Conte has assembled the best defence in European football.

The fact that it is completely Italian has been even more impressive, with plenty more Azzurri internationals throughout the side, ensuring that the club's values are upheld and a desire and commitment is present through the rough and the smooth.

Conte should also be lauded for how he has excellently blended a group of foreign stars into the side, particularly Arturo Vidal, who had never played in Serie A before his move to Juve two years ago.

Kwadwo Asamoah, Stephan Lichtsteiner and Mirko Vucinic are the other foreign regulars, but all of these had experience in Italy with previous clubs.

There seems to be a real spirit in the camp, and Conte has bonded this group closely, often devising this with carefully articulated speeches in press conferences to create an "us against them" mentality that Jose Mourinho has been famed for.

Just like Mourinho, Conte has not enjoyed his success without controversies, with the match-fixing scandal of 2012 bringing up his name and accusations of misprision of felony eventually landing him a ban of four months after a successful appeal reduced the initial 10-month punishment.

"Vergogna" (shame) cried Conte in numerous interviews as he felt he was being victimised and made out to be an example by the FIGC, but Conte negotiated his time away from the bench magnificently.

By identifying assistants Massimo Carrera and Angelo Alessio (who returned from his ban earlier than Conte) to guide the side during matches, Juve were in prime position on Conte's return, and the backroom staff have been lauded as being a vital reason for the immediate success enjoyed in the Conte era.

Whether it has been working with young players such as Paul Pogba or veterans like Andrea Pirlo, Conte has proven that he can get the best out of individuals and even shuffled his tactics in order to do so, as was the case with Pogba.

The tactical diversity displayed by Conte is something that is not stated nearly enough, and this component to his management has ensured that Juve will successfully negotiate the transition from domestic football to the demands of European football in the Champions League, ultimately the burning desire of La Vecchia Signora.

Thus far the project has been sensational, and the only blemish might be the Coppa Italia final defeat in 2012 to Napoli, but that was quickly forgotten due to the significance of the scudetto from the 2011/12 season—according to the club, not the FIGC—being counted as the 30th in their history and warranting a third star above the badge, an honour yet to be achieved by any other Italian club.

While the FIGC still maintain that Juve possess 29 scudetti (due to 2005 and 2006 scudetti being removed in the aftermath of the Calciopoli scandal), it is only a matter of time before everybody will have to acknowledge that third star.

While plenty of managers have claimed titles at Juventus, Conte's legacy is already secured, in part due to the timing of this current project, being the first titles since being relegated to Serie B.

The ambitions of the club have always spread outside of Italy, and the lure of the Champions League is something that the club are well aware of right now.

So while the domestic success has been enjoyed, Conte's next challenge is clearly to bring a third European Cup back to Turin, and it feels like he has the credentials to do so, having exceeded expectations in his debut season in the competition.

To top a group that possessed Shakhtar Donetsk and Chelsea was impressive, and the formality of sweeping aside Celtic in the last 16 meant that their defeat to Bayern at the quarter-final stage left the fans merely disappointed, but content with the progress achieved.

There is an equal desire on the manager's part to enjoy more success in Europe, though, and words expressed in the wake of their title success left many a little shocked, but actually somewhat impressed by Conte's immense hunger to build upon the last couple of seasons.

Many have pinpointed Conte's attack as the shortfall against Bayern, where they failed to score a goal over two legs against the German champions, so naturally some of the best forwards in Europe have been linked to the Bianconeri this summer.

Conte decided to heap pressure on the board to deliver more than just forwards if he is to take Juventus to the brink of success in Europe, stating that Luis Suarez, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Gonzalo Higuain "wouldn't be enough to win the Champions League" (per ESPN FC).

This quote is indicative of Conte the manager, always so precise with his words no matter the situation; whether he is joyous during title celebrations or irate at the sanctions imposed on him after the Calciopoli scandal, there is a deep meaning behind what the man says.

This particular quote was not just aimed at the board to provide him with the appropriate players to take the side to the next level, but also a thinly veiled challenge to the current group not to become satisfied with their domestic success.

The third year of the project will be crucial as to whether this Juventus side can join the elite of the Champions League and sustain that success over a number of years to ensure that the Bianconeri are always in contention to add to their two European Cups.

This summer should tell us considerably more about the approach from both Conte and the club and whether they are prepared to strive for that next level or not, which ultimately provides us with an answer as to whether Conte's ambitions can be satisfied in Turin, or whether a new challenge abroad is where he ultimately fulfils his managerial potential.

To stick or twist, that is the question for the Agnelli family and whether they can deliver what Conte really craves.

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