13.07.2019 » Can Ronaldo and Juventus achieve Champions League glory?
Juventus commenced pre-season training this week ahead of the 2019-20 campaign, as a mixture of both familiar and new faces arrived at the JTC (Juventus Training Center) on Wednesday, 10th July in Turin. Perhaps the most notable absence was that of Massimiliano Allegri, who departed the club at the end of last season, with Maurizio Sarri having already been appointed as his replacement on 16th June. Cristiano Ronaldo has also returned to the team this Saturday (July 13) and he certainly hopes to be fit for the upcoming friendlies against Tottenham (July 21) and Inter (July 24).
Juventus - Day one for the 2019-20 season
Allegri's cycle was ended by Ajax
The record of Allegri with the Bianconeri will take some beating, having not only achieved a club record win percentage of 70.4% during his tenure, but also guiding the team to five consecutive Serie A titles and four Coppa Italia triumphs, as well as two Champions League final appearances in the space of three years. The latter proved a frustrating experience, losing to Barcelona in 2015 and then Real Madrid in 2017. So near, yet so far.
Sarri will be tasked with taking the club one step further, aiming to lead Juventus to the continental glory they crave. This was perhaps the biggest disappointment during Allegri's final season in charge, agonisingly bowing out to Ajax in the quarterfinals, with the club having invested so heavily to lure Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo to wear the famous black and white shirt, believing he would be the final piece of the puzzle towards achieving that objective.
Changing of the guard
This summer has been a frenzy of activity so far, with the club moving swiftly to make key signings that will, hopefully, push the Old Lady of Italian football a step closer towards triumphing on the big European stage, continuing to build their options around Ronaldo as the attacking fulcrum. Prompted by the quality of the signings already made, Betway offer Juventus at 10/1 to win the Champions League, as of 10th July, with the qualifying stages of the competition already underway for some teams.
As always, Juventus have demonstrated their keen eye for bargains. French international midfielder Adrian Rabiot officially joined Juventus on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain, along with legendary Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, who returns to his spiritual home of Turin after just one season with the Parisian club. Welsh midfielder Aaron Ramsey is another interesting signing, grabbed after his contract expired with Premier League side Arsenal.
What a week for the Bianconeri!#LiveAhead pic.twitter.com/3PyMUErn7v
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) July 7, 2019
Following the retirement of rock-solid defender Andrea Barzagli at the end of last season, reinforcements at the back have also been an important focus. Experience has been replaced by highly promising youth, with the capture of 21-year-old Turkish centre-back Merih Demiral from Sassuolo for €18 million. Meanwhile, talented 20-year-old Italian under-21 international Luca Pellegrini has arrived from Roma for €22 million, with Leonardo Spinazzola heading in the opposite direction.
Will Juventus keep spending?
Mino Raiola has confirmed Matthijs de Ligt has agreed terms with Juventushttps://t.co/PtIwy8qVSR pic.twitter.com/kOpQEk6YHj
— Express Sport (@DExpress_Sport) July 8, 2019
After such a huge outlay signing Ronaldo from Real Madrid in the summer of 2018, the pursuit of Champions League success inevitably remains the top priority for the 2019-20 campaign at Juventus. That said, the club is also conscious that one man doesn't make a team, no matter how brilliant Ronaldo is individually, which means they must build one of the strongest squads in European football around the Portuguese star, who won the UEFA Nations League with his country at the start of June.
Rumours abound with two important protagonists at the centre of recent transfer speculation. Ajax starlet Matthijs de Ligt is a priority signing according to Goal, with his agent Mino Raiola claiming that personal terms have already been agreed, while the two clubs continue to thrash out terms for the transfer fee after. The 19-year-old has reported for pre-season training at the Dutch club, although he could be heading for Turin in a matter of days.
Another player under the umbrella of super-agent Mino Raiola is Paul Pogba, who has dropped plenty of hints that he wants to leave Old Trafford this summer, despite forming part of the Manchester United squad for their Asian tour. The stories linking the Frenchman with a return to Juventus are numerous and nothing new, making this a saga that could last the entire summer. Likewise, the Red Devils are unlikely to sell for anything less than the €105 million fee they paid the Italians in 2016, if not more, making this an extremely difficult move.
Whatever happens between now and the end of the summer transfer window, Juventus seem set to be at the centre of all the gossip columns around Europe, as they seek to book a date with destiny in the Champions League with Ronaldo at the tip of the lance.
Cristiano Ronaldo next game for Juventus is a pre-season friendly for the ICC on July 21 of 2019, against Tottenham. You can watch Juve vs Tottenham, Bayern Munchen vs Real Madrid, Tranmere Rovers vs Liverpool, Perth Glory vs Man United, Bohemian vs Chelsea, and Borussia Dortmund vs Schweinberg, all matches provided from our footy streaming game pages.
Juventus next game:
Juventus vs Tottenham kick-off time (21-07-2019):
Beijing (China) | UTC/GMT+8: 19:30
Jakarta (Indonesia) | UTC/GMT+7: 18:30
India (New Delhi) | UTC/GMT+5.30: 17:00
Italy (Turin) | UTC/GMT+2: 13:30
Spain (Madrid) | UTC/GMT+2: 13:30
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | UTC/GMT+1: 12:30
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | UTC/GMT-3: 08:30
New York (United States) | UTC/GMT-4: 07:30
Los Angeles (United States) | UTC/GMT-7: 04:30
Sources: ronaldo7.net / realmadrid.com / juventus.com / goal.com
