Antonio Conte steps down from the Juventus hotseat after guiding them to three Scudetti in a row. Replacing him is not likely to be easy and could shift the balance of power in Serie A.
D. Ray Morton, 16th July 2014.
Antonio Conte stunned Juventus fans yesterday by announcing his resignation after only signing a contract extension in May
Antonio Conte yesterday resigned from his role as Juventus manager in order, more than likely, to take over the available job of Italian national team manager after the departure of Cesare Prandelli following a disappointing World Cup campaign. Conte had rebuilt Juve in the aftermath of the calciopoli scandal which had drastically damaged the club's standing in the domestic and European game. Having guided them to three league titles in a row, Conte appeared to be building something special.
Why did he leave one must wonder. The national team role, provided he does apply for it, is a tempting one but not necessarily a once-off opportunity considering Conte's relatively young age and his sound reputation within the Italian game. There must have been some private dissatisfaction which forced his hand. One such dissatisfaction may be their activities in the transfer market this summer. Juventus have sat idle as they let their main target Alexis Sánchez get snapped up by Arsenal despite having the ball in their court in regards to capturing his signature. Sánchez saw Juve as his first-choice club and wanted to join his international teammates, Arturo Vidal and Mauricio Isla in Turin. The bianconeri could have signed him for as little as €25m before his impressive World Cup which saw his transfer value increase.
They hesitated and they missed out on a player that would add some considerable firepower to their line-up. Instead, they have been linked with the frankly overpriced Juan Iturbe of Hellas Verona and the largely unproven Real Madrid talent, Álvaro Morata. This represents side-stepping, not improvement. With the charismatic Conte now out of the picture, questions will be asked about the futures of their most talented assets, French international Paul Pogba and the aforementioned midfield dynamo Vidal. Will they be tempted to join a more ambitious club when the Old Lady appear to be struggling to compete with Europe's elite?
Paul Pogba could be one of the hot properties departing Turin in the aftermath of this managerial change
Another problem could be with Conte's successor. Massimiliano Allegri, former Serie A-winning AC Milan manager, is strong favourite to take over which could unsettle Andrea Pirlo. Allegri was the man that forced Pirlo out of San Siro and allowed him to leave on a free transfer where he revived his career and produced some of his best performances. At Milan, Allegri felt that Pirlo was a luxury player when used in his regista role and wanted a more dynamic, fast-paced midfield.
This sudden change will be a considerable blow for Juventus and perhaps Serie A in general. Although Conte had underachieved in Europe, Juve were still the most likely Italian side to get far in the Champions League provided they improved their squad season after season. The man with plan is gone and the prospective signings could turn out to be woeful. It might be a very close race for the title in the season ahead with Roma, Napoli, Fiorentina, Inter and AC Milan all salivating at this.
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