Things aren’t looking good for Juventus.
The club’s board have resigned, manager Max Allegri may walk out, they could be hit with a points deduction in Serie A, and they’re in the pits financially – a pit that will likely become deeper when their legitimate books from the last three years surface.
So yeah, it’s not looking good for Juventus.
But how does all of this affect the playing staff at the club?
Well that’s what we’re here to try and answer.
He’s a rundown of the full senior squad and what La Vecchia Signora should do with each player.
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GK – Wojciech Szczęsny – SELL: One of the better signings Juventus have made over the last five years, Szczęsny has been outstanding since taking over from Gianluigi Buffon. In an ideal world, Juve would keep a player of this quality, but if the club are in dire need of some funds then Woj is still someone who could command a relatively decent fee on the open market.
GK – Mattia Perin – KEEP: Renewed his contract in April (until 2025) and has never really put a foot wrong when he’s played for Juventus. He’s decent and probably doesn’t have much market value so there’s no point in selling.
GK – Carlo Pinsoglio – KEEP: He’s a hype man. Every team needs one. He’s also one of the lowest paid players at the club.
DEF – Mattia De Sciglio – KEEP: Like Perin, De Sciglio signed a new contract relatively recently and also has zero market value so there’s no point in selling.
DEF – Gleison Bremer – KEEP: Bought by the club in the summer, in an ideal world Juventus keep hold of Bremer because he’s bloody brilliant. If they really need money though, there aren’t many more valuable players at the club…
DEF – Danilo – RELEASE: This may surprise Premier League fans, but Danilo is one of the most important players Juventus currently have on the books. The defender’s contract runs until 2024 and, in theory, Juve should extend but it’ll likely be unfeasible given the financially precarious situation they find themselves in.
DEF – Alex Sandro – RELEASE: A rather mediocre footballer at this point in his career, Sandro’s contract expires at the end of the current season and he really shouldn’t hold out hope of getting a new one.
DEF – Federico Gatti – KEEP: The profile of player you’ll likely be seeing at Juve in the coming years. Gatti has something and could develop into a really solid central defender.
DEF – Leonardo Bonucci – RELEASE: Another who is currently looking for a new contract at Juve, and another who probably won’t get it. Bonucci’s performance levels have nosedived in recent seasons and it’s a good a time as any to let the centre-back leave.
DEF – Daniele Rugani – RELEASE: It’s rather incredible that Rugani is still at La Vecchia Signora.
MID – Manuel Locatelli – KEEP: The likely way forward for Juventus is to go full ‘Ital-Juve’ in the next few years. With that in mind, they have to keep hold of Locatelli. He’s brilliant.
MID – Juan Caudrado – RELEASE: A great player for Juve throughout the years, Cuadrado is now firmly, as the kids say, washed. His contract is up in the summer and the club should/will let him walk.
MID – Paul Pogba – SELL: Yes, he has just signed for the club. Yes, he’s a fantastic talent. But he still hasn’t played for Juve due to an injury, he’s one of the highest earners at the club and he still has market value (despite being injury prone), so it makes financial sense to cut ties as soon as possible.
MID – Weston McKennie – SELL: Even without the recent news Juventus would be out of their minds not sell McKennie. Put simply, he’s been awful this season and yet, despite that, a Premier League club will probably give Juve £20m+ for the midfielder. You have to love that PL money.
MID – Filip Kostic – KEEP: Considering I Bianconeri bought Kostic for €15m, it’s doubtful that there’s a team out there willing to pay a gigantic fee for the wide midifielder’s services. That’s not to say he isn’t great though, he is, he’s arguably been Juve’s best player this season.
MID – Fabio Miretti – KEEP: If Juventus could only keep one player in their whole squad, it would be Fabio Miretti. That’s how good this kid is. He’s utterly brilliant and is the future of the football club.
MID – Adrien Rabiot – SELL: Look, I know he’s played well above his usual standards this season but c’mon. Let’s be real. He wants a €10m per year contract (after tax), he was woeful throughout the rest of his Juve career (90min literally broke their own player rating system to give him N/As in games he played 90 minutes in to show how non-existent he was), and there probably is a club out there who will put in a bid for him after the World Cup. Get rid.
MID – Leandro Paredes – RELEASE: Release in this case meaning ‘buy him a one way ticket back to Paris and ban him from ever entering Turin again’.
MID – Nicolo Fagioli – KEEP: The best moment of Juventus’ season was boyhood fan Fagioli scoring against Inter. File under: definitely keep for over a decade.
FWD – Federico Chiesa – KEEP: Chelsea fans on Twitter are already posting photoshopped images of Chiesa in the Blues home kit. I’d hedge my bets and say Juve, despite the fee they could get for him, will do everything they can to keep hold of Chiesea. He’s the face of the team.
FWD – Dusan Vlahovic – KEEP*: An asterisk has been put on this one because there is the distinct possibility that a club tables a €100m bid for Vlahovic, and the club would obviously have to accept such an offer. The Serbian is one of the best young players in Europe.
FWD – Arkadiusz Milik – RELEASE: The forward has been very good as he’s, amazingly, been able to stay fit. Juve have a €7m option to sign him outright from Marseille in the summer but, depending on sanctions, they might not even be able to pay that.
FWD – Moise Kean – SELL: Considering that Juventus may not be able pick up the €7m option to sign Milik, it must be rather terrifying for the clubs accountants that they have a €28m obligation to sign Kean in the summer. It’s bad. Maybe they can buy him and immediately sell to another club? Maybe.
FWD – Kaio Jorge – KEEP: Highly-rated, only 20 years old, might as well keep him.
FWD – Angel Di Maria – RELEASE: One good game every two months from Di Maria isn’t really enough to warrant what he’s currently being paid. If you can, rescind his contract.
FWD – Matias Soule – KEEP: Another youngster who Juventus should rely on moving forward.
FWD – Marley Ake – KEEP: Slowly being bedded into first-team plans, it seems that Max Allegri has high hopes for the French attacker.
Credit: 90min.com
