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Hello
and welcome. My name is Samuel Angol and I wish to thank you for visiting my site. I have been a fan of Juventus Football Club, the most successful club in the history of Italian football, for about five
years now. Juventus are also known as La Vecchia Signora (The Old Lady) and the Bianconeri
(Black and Whites). I was especially seduced by Juventus because of its winning philosophy, great players down the
years, influence in the world of football, and its amazing consistency on the Italian and European football
stages, particularly in the past decade or so. I think the sheer history and success of Juventus will guarantee its
place in the pantheon of world club football well into the forseeable future.
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| Zidane's post-World Cup season: one to forget. |
My love affair with Juventus began in the summer of 1998. I
resided in Pennsylvania at the time. I had become fascinated with French playmaker Zinedine Zidane
after witnessing his masterful performance in the 1998 World Cup Final versus Brazil. At the time, Zidane played his
club football for Juventus, based in the auto-making city of Turin in the Piedmont
region of northwestern Italy. His subsequent awarding of both the European Footballer
of the Year and FIFA World Player of the Year prizes urged me to focus on
his club career with Juventus. I then set about learning a lot about Juventus: when they were founded, the number of
scudettos (championships)
they had won, their rivals, and so forth. Stating that I was impressed with my findings is an understatement.
Ironically, Zidane's World Cup exploits were followed
by an anti-climactic 1998/99 season characterized by injury to key players and rumors of discontent within
the Juve camp. Legendary coach Marcello Lippi became so frustrated, he quit halfway through the season.
Former AC Milan player Carlo Ancelotti was entrusted with picking up the pieces. Juventus
finished a miserable seventh place and in the process surrendered the championship to the aforementioned AC Milan, Italy's
second most successful club. Bianconeri fans the world over expressed their discontent.
Season 1999-00 saw
a resurgence in Bianconeri fortunes. With Zidane once again showing inspired form, Juventus went through
a period of near-invincibility in the second half of the season. Fans thought the good old days were back again.
At one stage, the Bianconeri built a seemingly insurmountable nine-point lead over closest challengers SS
Lazio of Rome. However, fatigue and complacency conspired to rob us of the title. Lazio serendipitously
won the title on the final day of the season after Juventus had contrived to lose to unfancied Perugia
on a waterlogged pitch in Tuscany. Needless to say, that was a bitter pill to swallow.
The following season, 2000-01, had the opposite story line compared
to the previous campaign. Juve started slowly, finished strongly, but again failed to land the scudetto. That distinction went to AS Roma, bitter cross-town
rivals of Lazio, who carried all before them and simultaneously curtailed a spectacular 18-year barren spell.
This chapter in Juve's history prompted the club's hierarchy
to ring a few changes in personnel. Carlo Ancelotti was given his marching orders. The backbone of the squad
was strengthened with the acquisition of highly-rated goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, French defender Lilian
Thuram, and Czech midfield sensation Pavel Nedved. This proved to be a stroke
of genius on the part of Juve's top brass in that it guaranteed continuity without disrupting the existing chemistry.
All too often sports teams make dramatic changes in their playing staff and then despair when the team's trophy
cabinet doesn't instantaneously fill itself. In my estimation, Nedved has been the best signing in that he
has brought Juventus much-needed aggression, creativity, desire, and above all, a superior will to win.
Even though Zidane had been sold for a world-record $66 million to Spanish superclub Real
Madrid CF in the process, Juve fans salivated at the prospect of having legend Marcello Lippi back in charge.
The cautious, calculating philosophy of Ancelotti's reign was ditched for a more positive approach oriented around
ruthless efficiency, especially in attack. Marcello Lippi later admitted that during his time away from the game, the
landscape of European football had been altered rather drastically and that the changes were better suited
for the modern era. Juve's sparkling football in the ensuing season culminated in lifting the scudetto on a glorious day in May 2002 when long-time league leaders
FC Internazionale lost to SS Lazio in Rome. For a club of this magnitude, four years between titles had been an
eternity. Happy days were here again!
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| Marcello Lippi and Alessandro Del Piero celebrate an unexpected scudetto win on May 5th 2002. |
 send to a
friend
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| From left to right: Alessio Tacchinardi, Gianluigi Buffon,, Alessandro Del Piero, and Pavel Nedved. |
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| From left to right: Alessio Tacchinardi, Gianluigi Buffon, Alessandro Del Piero, and Pavel Nedved. |
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Trivia Questions:
1) What is the record number of consecutive scudettos won by Juventus?
2) Which Welsh player was known as Il Gigante Buono
( The Gentle Giant) during his time with the Bianconeri?
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| Hint: I was one of the first foreign players to enjoy success in the Italian League. |
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