The week begins with a much-loved Juventus player celebrating his half century. Despite only featuring for one season, Alejnikov won a place in the hearts of the Bianconeri faithful by winning the UEFA Cup and Coppa Italia following his transfer from Dinamo Minsk. The midfielder from the Soviet Union made 50 appearances for Dino Zoff’s side in their march towards a cup double.
Conte’s side enjoy the first of two days off following yesterday’s postponed fixture against Napoli. There’s good news from the sporting body who declare that Juventus will have a full complement of players available for the clash against Palermo, to be contested on Sunday 20 November.
And a further announcement in the evening confirms the rearranged date of the encounter at the San Paolo. The Bianconeri will travel to Naples on Tuesday 29 November, with the fixture falling between Sunday’s away game against Lazio and the following Sunday’s visit of Cesena.
Tuesday 8 November
Juventus maintains its position at the forefront of social technologies by becoming the first Italian football club to use Google+. The recently launched social network will be implemented in conjunction with the club’s existing social media platforms, further enhancing the Bianconeri’s interaction with all four corners of the globe.
News from Naples states Juventus’ non involvement with the matters charged relating to Calciopoli.
Wednesday 9 November
An important day for all Juventus fans worldwide as talismanic skipper Alessandro Del Piero celebrates his 37th birthday. However, it’s business as usual for the striker, who regroups in Vinovo for the team’s first workout of the week, minus those on international duty. Del Piero receives a warm welcome at Juventus Center from a group of fans sporting banners dedicated to their idol.
Gianluca Pessotto returns from Liverpool having delivered a 30-minute presentation on Juventus Football Club’s commitment to youth. The Bianconeri legend and Vice Director of Youth outlines the club’s desire to nurture its home-grown talent at the European Professional Football Leagues (EPFL) workshop.
Thursday 10 November
The celebrations continue as Marco Storari welcomes the arrival of his second son into the world. The goalkeeper’s wife, Veronica, gives birth to Piergiorgio, a brother for Tommaso.
The Juventus Stadium Tours, opened last week by Pavel Nedved, are proving their popularity as it emerges that over 1,000 visitors have viewed the Bianconeri’s new home in the first seven days. And the resounding response looks set to continue, with a further thousand supporters signed up to visit before the end of the month.
Back in Vinovo, Juventus follow up last week’s four-goal friendly exploits with another four in a workout against Savona. Antonio Conte makes the most of the opportunity to view Giaccherini back in match action and field several Primavera prospects. Del Piero gives the Bianconeri the lead, with Gabriel Appelt and Fabio Grosso adding to the score after the break. Giaccherini caps off his comeback by finding the target in the dying minutes.
The winger spoke at the final whistle, indicating his pleasure at returning to the fold: “After being out through injury it’s been important to play at a good pace, even if it’s just in a friendly. Of course, it’s not the same intensity as a game with three points up for grabs, but these tests are still extremely valuable, because they let you get minutes under your belt, and help you to put the manager’s ideas into practice.”
While the Bianconeri toil on the pitch, a special guest stands on the sidelines alongside former team-mate Pavel Nedved. Brazilian midfielder Emerson, a mainstay of Fabio Capello’s 2005 and 2006 Scudetto winning sides, is back in Turin and the ‘Puma’ believes that Juventus are on the right track: “They’ve got the right mentality and step by step I believe that they’re getting back to be the Juve of old. The club’s bought some great players who have immediately hit the ground running.”
In Turkey, Luca Marrone masterminds the Italian Under 21 side to a fourth successive victory in their bid for a place in this summer’s European Championships. The young midfielder plays 90 minutes as the Azzurri top the group with two games in hand over their opponents.
Friday 11 November
Arturo Vidal and Andrea Barzagli are back in Vinovo following their return from international duty. The Chilean midfielder carries out the full workout with the group, while the defender conducts an individual training program to shake off the muscle contraction which forced his early departure from Italy’s training camp.
Alex Manninger then joins Valeria Ciardiello in the studio for this week’s edition of ‘Filo Diretto’. The goalkeeper confesses that Conte’s work is striking the right chord with the players: “I like this Juventus side. We play a modern brand of football and after two less than brilliant years, I think that we’re ready to achieve important results.”
The evening sees a whole host of Bianconeri representing their nations. Goals from Balotelli and Pazzini hand Italy a 2-0 win in Poland, with Gigi Buffon saving a penalty four minutes from time to maintain a clean sheet. Alongside the goalkeeper, Chiellini and Marchisio appear for 90 minutes, while Pirlo is replaced by Thiago Motta shortly after the interval. Pepe and Matri make second half appearances from the bench after their recall to the national setup.
Elsewhere, Marcelo Estigarribia plays 80 minutes in Paraguay’s 2-1 World Cup qualifier success over Ecuador. Stephan Lichtsteiner’s Switzerland contest a goalless draw with Holland, while Milos Krasic’s Serbia dip against Mexico. In the European Championship play-offs, Montenegrin striker Mirko Vucinic witnesses his side suffer a two-goal defeat in the Czech Republic, with the return leg scheduled for next Tuesday.
Saturday 12 November
While Italy coasted to success in Poland last night, Leonardo Bonucci remained in Turin. The defender admitted his disappointment at missing out, but insists he is ready to work hard to reclaim his place in the squad: “Nothing is obvious in football, and I’ve never taken anything for granted. Obviously, I’d have preferred to form part of the selection, and I’ve been a bit surprised about the coach’s decision, but I’ll work hard to turn these negative thoughts into positive feelings in future.”
In the afternoon, Marco Baroni’s Primavera rue a missed opportunity to overtake leaders Fiorentina, having been handed an unlikely favour from neighbours Torino. The Granata beat the Viola 1-0, but the young Bianconeri fail to take full advantage in Novara. It starts well for Juventus, with Beltrame coming back to haunt his former employers by putting his new side ahead from the spot. However, Baroni’s young guns also pay the penalty soon after and the hosts secure a share of the spoils from eight yards.
Sunday 13 November
The morning brings a memorable victory for the Giovanissimi over rivals Torino. Udoh hits both goals, with Claudio Gabetta’s side staving off a second half Granata fightback to gain three priceless points.
But the second 2-1 result of the day fails to go in Juventus’ favour as the Allievi suffer a narrow defeat at the hands of Empoli. The spirited showing from Del Rosso's side proves not to be enough, as their opponents snatch victory through a second half winner.
Source: Juventus.com
