Juventus: major crisis looms after Atlético defeat
Elimination at the last-16 stage of the Champions League would be considered a catastrophic failure for the Bianconeri, particularly following the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Juventus’ unexpected 2-0 defeat to Atlético Madrid in the first leg of the Champions League last-16 tie has set alarm bells ringing in Italy.
Bowing out at the last-16 stage of the competition would be deemed a catastrophic failure for the Bianconeri, particularly following the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo in the summer, which had made the club one of the clear favourites to clinch the title this year.
From bond sales to squad clear-outs, club president Andrea Agnelli has gone to great lengths to finance the signing of the former Real Madrid star, who, it was hoped, would lead Juventus to the Champions League glory that has eluded the club for 23 years.
The expensive acquisition prompted Juve to enter the bond market earlier this month for the first time in its history, where it is seeking to raise $150 million from investors. Agnelli was also forced to unload several players to somewhat balance the books, the most high profile of which was Gonzalo Higuaín’s, who completed a nine-million-euro loan move to AC Milan.
But aside from the Argentine striker, Juve also let go of Stefano Sturaro (Genoa, 16 million euros); Alberto Cerri (Cagliari, 9 million) Rolando Mandragora (Udinese, 20 million) and Emil Audero (Sampdoria, 20 million).
The defeat at the Wanda is seen as a major setback, as much at the Juventus Stadium as on the stock exchange, where 11 percent was wiped off the club’s value yesterday following Wednesday’s game.
The Old Lady has all but wrapped up its eighth consecutive Serie A title, enjoying a 13 point lead over second-placed Napoli with 24 games played. But elimination from the quarterfinals of the Italian Cup (as happened at the hands of Atlanta on 30 January) and the last-16 stage of the Champions League would mark the first season of the Ronaldo era as an insufferable failure.
Talks of new coach and new players intensify
In the Italian press, most of the blame for the fiasco at the Wanda has been pinned on Massimiliano Allegri, the coach who has led Juve to two finals in recent years.
Talks of his possible replacement intensified yesterday with Zinedine Zidane reportedly keeping a close eye on the situation at the Juventus Stadium. The Frenchman maintains a special relationship with the club, where he played from 1996 to 2001, and would naturally be welcomed with open arms by the Juventini.
There was also talk of the need for a clean sweep in the summer transfer market: Aaron Ramsey has already been signed on a free transfer from Arsenal, while the likes of Ajax’s Matthijs De Ligt, Real Madrid’s Marcelo and Isco, and Mohamed Salah of Liverpool have also been linked with the Serie A champions.
Nevertheless, while alarm bells are ringing in Italy, nobody has given the Old Lady up for dead just yet. In last year’s knock-out stage, Allegri’s side came so close to achieving a feat at the Santiago Bernabéu that, in principle, was much more challenging than the task of overturning Atlético’s advantage in Turin next month.