JUVENTUS LEFT IN TURMOIL AFTER CONTE'S RESIGNATION

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.

SUÁREZ TO BARCELONA REPRESENTS A STRANGE PIECE OF BUSINESS

D. Ray Morton, 11th July 2014.

Will this be club football's dream strike force next season?

Next Wednesday, Barcelona will confirm the signing of Liverpool's controversial Uruguayan striker Luis Suárez. The fee is expected to be near the figure of €94m making Suárez one of the most expensive players of all-time. Cristiano Ronaldo's move to Real Madrid hit similar numbers though Gareth Bale's move to the same club is thought be somewhere between €91-100m.

Meanwhile, Barcelona have offloaded Chilean attacker Alexis Sánchez to Arsenal for only €38m meaning that there is a €56m gap in value between he and Suárez. With Suárez two years older than the Chilean, canny followers of the transfer market may raise an eyebrow or two in surprise. Is the tempermental Suárez really that much better? Though the Uruguayan has demonstrated great scoring prowess over the past few seasons at Liverpool, at twenty-seven, Suárez is at his peak whilst Sánchez can only get better. Sánchez also comes out of the World Cup with an improved reputation having put in some great performances for Chile. Though Suárez starred against England, his bite at Giorgio Chiellini ended his tournament in disgrace.

Arsenal jumped at the opportunity to sign Alexis Sánchez with Barcelona eager to sell to free up funds for the Suárez deal
 

Liverpool will obviously need a replacement. Recent reports have linked them with Real Madrid's Karim Benzema, a move which may or may not happen depending on whether the Madrid club want to go after Monaco's Colombian pair, Radamel Falcao and James Rodríguez. Alternate options are the precocious talent that is Belgian teenager Divock Origi or Benfica's Serbian attacker Lazar Markovic.

Looking at the Suárez deal, it represents a considerable risk for Barcelona. He will have to serve his ban which stretches well into the beginning of the season without even the opportunity to train with his new team-mates. With Neymar out injured with a significant back injury, Barça will have to start the season with only one of their first-choice attackers, Lionel Messi, who will be coming off the back of an entire World Cup's worth of matches. Should the Catalan club start the season sluggishly, there will be higher expectations of Suárez once he becomes available.

The potential front three of Neymar-Messi-Suárez looks great on paper and represents something of a South American dream attack force. Will they click? Messi will want to remain in his central false 9 role and Neymar prefers to play on the left but is the right side of a front three the best position for Suárez to occupy? At Liverpool, he would often play centrally or on the left but it was Raheem Sterling who usually played on the right when the Merseysiders played with a front three. It seems strange to spend so much on a player if he is to be played slightly out of position. Suárez is highly adaptable and will not kick up a fuss but it represents something of a conundrum for new manager Luis Enrique. The outgoing Sánchez's preferred role was that right winger slot that Suárez will be fitted in to.

With this enormous outlay, Barcelona have gone back to challenging Real Madrid directly with their wallet. Expectations are massive and finishing the season without a major title, either La Liga or the Champions League, will represent a failure considering the investment they have made. Suárez is on a five-year deal and the Catalans should expect to win many trophies in that time provided he lives up to the hype. A fascinating season ahead but whether Suárez is the upgrade to make Barcelona the greatest again is up for question.