Cristiano Giuntoli was named best sporting director of the year at the Globe Soccer Awards, but has since left Scudetto winners Napoli. ‘I hope to be back here representing Juventus.’
He was in charge of the Partenopei’s transfer strategy from 2015 until last summer, when he bowed out after helping the club secure the first Serie A triumph in over 30 years.
That was largely thanks to the kind of talents he spotted and snapped up for cheap, such as Kim Min-jae and Kvicha Kvaratskhelia.
“It is an honour for me to be here this evening,” Giuntoli said at the event in Dubai.
“It’s true that 2023 was an historic year, as we won the Scudetto with Napoli and I want to thank President Aurelio De Laurentiis, coach Luciano Spalletti, the players and my former collaborators. I also want to thank my family, who help me to get better every day.
“Now I have started a new adventure at Juventus. Our objective is to get back into the Champions League and if possible win the Coppa Italia. In future it will be important for me to come back here and win another award, hopefully representing Juventus.”
Although they are in second place only two points off Serie A leaders Inter, Juve continue to insist the Scudetto is not their target for this season, even if the players see it differently.
“You must always have ambition, even in transitional years. This season our ambition is to get back into the Champions League and get the best out of our lads.”
As Inter are in Saudi Arabia for the Supercoppa Italiana, facing Lazio this evening in the semi-final, Juventus could go top of the Serie A table by beating Lecce this weekend, putting the pressure on Simone Inzaghi’s men.
While Inter director Beppe Marotta likened the situation to ‘the hunter and the hare’, Max Allegri turned it on its head to describe it as ‘cops and robbers.’
“That was just a wonderful joke, as to be expected from Tuscans and their sense of humour. He just wanted to make fun of the controversy. We are looking back towards fifth place, as we want to stay as far away from them as possible,” concluded Giuntoli.