The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Juventus

  • Super Cup: Onazi to start against Juventus

    Super Cup: Onazi to start against Juventus

    According to projections by the Italian media, Eddy Onazi will be named in the starting line – up when Lazio tackle Juventus in the Super Cup on Saturday.

    Tuttomercatoweb.com says the Biancocelesti manager, Stefano Pioli, is planning to deploy a 4 – 3 – 3 formation, with Onazi handed one of the spots in midfield alongside Biglia and Cataldi.

    Over the course of last season, the Nigeria international started only nine games out of a possible 45, and was an unused substitute in Lazio’s 2 – 1 loss to Juventus in the final of the Italian Cup.

    The 22-year-old has racked up 88 appearances for Lazio across all competitions since he made his debut.

    The central midfielder will not be called – up for the Super Eagle AFCON qualifying tie with Tanzania after he was red – carded against Tanzania in June.

  • UCL: Barcelona to play Bayern Munich in semi final

    UCL: Barcelona to play Bayern Munich in semi final

    … Real meets Juventus

    Barcelona has been drawn against Pep Guardiola’s Bayern Munich in the Champions League semi-finals.

    The other last-four tie sees Juventus – playing in its first semi-final since 2003 – facing Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid, the defending champions, the BBC reports.

    The first legs will be played on 5 and 6 May, with the return matches a week later.

    In the Europa League, holders Sevilla face Fiorentina, while Rafael Benitez’s Napoli will square up against Ukraine’s Dnipro.

    Bayern boss Guardiola won 13 trophies as a manager – including the Champions League in 2009 and 2011 – during four years at Barcelona.

    He has reached the Champions League semi-finals in each of his six seasons as a manager, four with Barca and now two with Bayern.

    Ancelotti will also be reunited with one of his former clubs, with the Italian having managed the Turin side from 1999 to 2001.

    The draw leaves open the possibility of a Barcelona v Real Madrid European Cup final, something which has never happened before. The arch-rivals are also battling it out for the Spanish league title this season.

    Real Madrid reached the last four by defeating city rivals Atletico – in a repeat of last season’s final – thanks to Javier Hernandez’s late goal.

    Bayern Munich thrashed Porto 6-1 at home to overturn a first-leg deficit and progress 7-4 on aggregate.

    Things were more straightforward for Barcelona, who beat Paris St-Germain 5-1 overall, and Juventus, who beat Monaco 1-0 over two legs.

    This season’s final will be played at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium on 6 June.

     

  • Juventus eyeing Axel Witsel

    Juventus eyeing Axel Witsel

    Turin-based media outlet Tuttosport is reporting that Juventus are keeping close tabs on Zenit midfielder Axel Witsel.

    With Andrea Pirlo nearing the end of his career and Paul Pogba almost certain to leave in the summer, the Bianconeri are in the market for a central midfielder.

    According to Tuttosport, they have made Zenit’s Axel Witsel their number one target and are already working on the deal bringing him to Turin.

    And while the Russians have slapped a €50 million price tag on the Belgium international, Juventus are ready to offer between €20m and €25m.

    The Bianconeri plan to use Luciano D’Onofrio, the man who helped bring Zinedine Zidane to Turin, as an intermediary given his close ties to the player.

    Axel Witsel, 26, joined Zenit from Benfica in a €40 million deal two and a half years ago and has since featured in 65 Russian Premier League matches and scored 11 goals.

  • Juventus signs Matri on loan from AC Milan

    Juventus signs Matri on loan from AC Milan

    Juventus have signed Alessandro Matri from AC Milan on loan until the end of the season, with the striker returning to Turin for a second spell.

    The Bianconeri were in the market for a replacement for Sebastian Giovinco, who left the club on Monday in order to join Toronto FC.

    Juventus’ three main targets had been Pablo Osvaldo, Simone Zaza and Matri, and they have confirmed that they have opted for the latter – who had been on loan at Genoa.

    “Alessandro Matri has today returned to Juventus after agreeing terms on a loan switch from Genoa until 30 June 2015,” a statement on the club’s official website read.

    Matri scored 29 goals in 83 games for the Old Lady between 2010 and 2013, winning two Scudetti. He then transferred to his youth team club Milan for €11 million, but endured a miserable time at San Siro.

    After just one goal in 18 appearances, he moved to Fiorentina on loan in January of 2014. He then was sent out on loan again last summer to Genoa, and this season he has scored seven Serie A goals in 16 games.

    Matri has now completed a third loan move in the space of a year by returning to Juventus, where he will compete with Carlos Tevez, Fernando Llorente, Alvaro Morata and Kingsley Coman for a starting position.

    The 30-year-old has won six caps for Italy, scoring one goal.

  • Ogbonna counts on Juventus’ form

    Ogbonna counts on Juventus’ form

    Angelo Obinze Ogbonna is insisting Juventus are unshakeable despite seeing their Serie A unbeaten record ended by Genoa.

    The Bianconeri lost 1-0 at Marassi on Wednesday, and that allowed Roma to catch them at the top of the table on 22 points.

    “We are mentally solid and unshakeable. We are only in Week 9, as last season we had 22 points and Roma were five in front of us Ogbonna told Jtv.

    “It is only normal that there are big expectations around us, but we are relaxed, knowing we must be concentrated on the finish line.

    “We slipped against Genoa,but we immediately have a game against Empoli to make up for it.We will find the same difficulties we had at Genoa,because smaller teams clam up against us and it’s difficult to find spaces.We must therefore be wary of counter-attacks and become more clinical.”

    The Empoli tie is brought forward today so that Juventus can prepare for their Champions League clash with Olympiacos in Turin.

    “We have a good chance of qualifying and must give our all, but the help of the fans will be fundamental and on Tuesday I really hope they can be our 12th Man”

    Juve lost 1-0 in Athens and are three points adrift of Olympiacos and Atletico Madrid in their Champions League group.

  • Juventus set to beat Fiorentina for Manchester City defender

    Juventus could beat Serie A rivals Fiorentina to the permanent signing of Manchester City defender Micah Richards, according to reports in Italy.

    The former England defender has spent this season on loan at the Stadio Artemio Franchi after being shipped out by City boss Manuel Pellegrini and it now looks likely the 26-year-old will not return to the Premier League.

    Serie A champions Juventus have been impressed with Richards since his move to Italy and Massimiliano Allegri could sign the full-back on a pre-arranged deal in January, with his existing City contract expiring next summer.

    Juve are concerned Stephan Lichtsteiner has still not committed his long-term future to the club after contract talks stalled, which has made the signing of Richards a high priority.

    However, Juve will face competition from the Viola for his signature, given that Fiorentina have already agreed a fee of £4.7m for the defender to turn his loan deal into a permanent switch at the end of the season.

  • Juventus keep tabs on Memphis Depay

    Juventus keep tabs on Memphis Depay

    l Corriere dello Sport is reporting that Juventus are hot on the trail of PSV Eindhoven winger Memphis Depay.

    The Bianconeri have been keeping close tabs on the Netherlands international for a while, and they could make a late bid for his services.

    However, it remains to be seen whether the Old Lady will be prepared to match PSV’s €15 million asking price.

    Memphis Depay exploded onto the big stage last season, scoring 12 goals in 32 league appearances for the Dutch giants.

    He was in turn called in the Netherlands World Cup squad and went on to net two times in four matches at the tournament finals.

    Depay, 20, has continued his stunning form by notching 4 goals in 2 league games this term, and it is only a matter of time before he leaves PSV for greener pastures.

    The Phillips Arena outfit face bitter rivals Ajax at Amsterdam ArenA next weekend and they are 5/2 to emerge victorious.

  • Ibrahimovic: I don’t wish to return to Juventus

    Ibrahimovic: I don’t wish to return to Juventus

    Stefan Hansson claimed that the striker told him that he was keen on rejoining the Bianconeri before he retires – but the 32-year-old says that the pair have never even met.

    Paris Saint-Germain star Zlatan Ibrahimovic has dismissed the suggestion that he wants to return to Juventus.

    Italian publication Tuttosport recently published an interview with Swedish coach Stefan Hansson, who claimed to have befriended the striker at Malmo and suggested that the 32-year-old wants to rejoin the Serie A champions, whom he played for between 2004 and 2006.

    However, Ibrahimovic has now claimed that not only is he uninterested in going back to Juve, he does not even know Hansson.

    “A person named Stefan Hansson has been making comments about me,” the Sweden international said via his personal app Zlatan Unplugged.

    “I would like to clarify that I do not know this person. I have never met him, he has never been my coach and we have never talked on Skype.

    “Normally, I would not even comment on matter like this, but his comments have reached unreasonable proportions, so I felt compelled to react.”

    Ibrahimovic, who netted twice in PSG’s 2-2 Ligue 1 draw against Reims at the weekend, has a contract with the Ligue 1 champions until June 2016.

  • Morata eyeing Juventus comeback

    Alvaro Morata has delivered a boost for Juventus with the news he hopes to return ahead of schedule from a knee injury.

    The 21-year-old striker was ruled out for seven weeks after suffering a second grade tear of the medial collateral ligament in his left knee during his first training session after moving from Real Madrid.

    With the new campaign due to get underway at the end of this month, reports suggested the Serie A champions could be tempted back into the market in the absence of Morata.

    However, the Spaniard believes he could return to full training sooner than originally expected.

    “My knee is getting better, I’m recovering well,” he told AS TV. “In about 30 or 35 days I will be ready.

    “It was a shame about the injury but I’m working with the physios to play again soon.

    “Signing for Juventus has been a great joy, I’m really happy with my new team.”

    Morata signed a five-year deal with the Turin giants last month after the two clubs agreed a €20million fee.

  • Morata ‘very happy’ to be joining Juventus

    The 21-year-old’s proposed €18 million move to Turin has not yet been finalised but he has reportedly agreed a four-year contract with the Italian champions

    Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata has admitted that he is “very happy” to be joining Juventus, describing it as a great “personal challenge”.

    The Spain Under-21 international has not yet signed on the dotted line for the Bianconeri despite a lengthy pursuit from the Italian champions, who have had to fend off reported interest from Arsenal and Wolfsburg in the forward.

    However, Morata’s head is clearly already at Juve, who have reportedly agreed to pay Madrid an initial €18 million fee, which could rise to €22m depending on bonuses.

    “I am very happy,” he is quoted as saying by Marca. “For me, this is a personal challenge.”

    Morata, who is set to earn €2.2m per year after tax according to reports, is said to be ready to commit himself to the Serie A champions until 2018, with the option of an additional season.