Leonardo Bonucci claims people only like Juventus when they are losing and targets the Champions League.
The defender has been there through all five consecutive Scudetti and often found himself in the eye of a storm of controversy.
Most recently, some sites tried to imply he headbutted referee Nicola Rizzoli, whereas video images show he merely went close to his face without there being contact.
“I made a mistake in my excessive protest and was quite rightly booked,” Bonucci told Quotidiano Sportivo.
Leonardo Bonucci claims people only like Juventus when they are losing and targets the Champions League.
The defender has been there through all five consecutive Scudetti and often found himself in the eye of a storm of controversy.
Most recently, some sites tried to imply he headbutted referee Nicola Rizzoli, whereas video images show he merely went close to his face without there being contact.
“I made a mistake in my excessive protest and was quite rightly booked,” Bonucci told Quotidiano Sportivo.
“But I never even dreamed of touching him with my head. It never happened, as the referee confirmed too. When it comes to Juve, people analyse individual frames and try to find anything to hurt us.
“Maybe they thought it would help destabilise us… Up until the end of October, Juve just weren’t there and it was our own fault. But after that we achieved something incredible.
“Nobody ever again will win 24 out of 25 games. If they had asked me in October, I would’ve said we’d still win the Scudetto, but not with that run of results.
“When you win, people dislike you. I remember the first year with Antonio Conte and the one before that when we finished seventh. An error in our favour didn’t cause a scandal then. At the time, people liked us.”
Some of that dislike is aimed specifically at Bonucci, whose traditional celebration is to puff up his cheeks and point at his face, as if to say ‘wash your mouths out before you speak about me.’
“It isn’t an insult towards anyone. It was made up by my friends the first year I came to Juve. They were Lazio, Inter and Milan fans, it was all just a joke.
“Then I realised the fans liked it. Sometimes when I meet people in the street, they don’t shake my hand, they make that celebratory gesture.
“I honestly didn’t think it could irritate anyone. I celebrated like that for the Nazionale against Norway too. I respect everyone, because those who love this sport deserve only respect.
“I was born a Juventus fan in a family full of Inter supporters. I was the black sheep! I was led astray by my uncles, who were Juve fans.”
The Bianconeri went out of the Champions League in the Round of 16 to Bayern Munich, capitulating in extra time after two 2-2 draws.
“We must at least reach the semi-final next season. I still have the anger within me for what happened against Bayern.
“My teammates and I can’t wait to play in Europe again, as we want to transform that disappointment into victories. We want to lift it to the sky. We will try.”