During his interview with Tuttosport, Maurizio Arrivabene admits that the Bianconeri didn’t fulfil Ronaldo’s potential entirely and explains why ‘it won’t be Allegri’s Juventus.’
The Old Lady’s CEO confirmed that Matthijs de Ligt wants to leave the club in the summer despite a contract expiring in June 2024. However, he also touched on several different issues, including the imminent arrival of Paul Pogba and Cristiano Ronaldo’s exit a year ago.
“Ronaldo’s potential wasn’t entirely fulfilled because of COVID,” said Arrivabene, who arrived at the club one year ago, just a few weeks before CR7’s return to Manchester United.
“It’s a pity, but I am convinced that Juventus are bigger than any player. It’s a club with precise rules, so the team is always more important than single players. There are rules that everyone must respect here, including me.”
How did Juventus decide to re-sign Pogba?
“We are in talks and things are evolving in a very positive way,” confirmed Arrivabene.
“It all started from a question: why don’t we sign Pogba? The idea, however, is not enough, you always have to put it into practice. You always need to understand if it’s a feasible operation and if it’s sustainable. If the figures make sense, you must present them to the board of directors. We are talking about important players, clearly.”
Pogba is a close friend of Paulo Dybala, but the duo won’t reunite in Turin as today is the final day of La Joya’s contract at the Allianz Stadium. He is already available as a free agent as Juventus decided against extending his contract in March.
“There was an agreement, but after the cash injection, we decided to stop and think. The agents were aware of the situation and agreed with it. We met again and told them that the terms had changed, so starting from a four-year contract, we opted for a different strategy. Everybody knows who we signed in January, correct? [Dusan Vlahovic].
“However, this hasn’t created any fracture between Dybala and us. The rapport has always been friendly. I hope Dybala will find a team and the satisfaction that he deserves. From our perspective, everything has a start and an end.
“I repeat, Juventus come before everything else. Some players leave a mark, but Juventus will always be more important.”
Is coach Allegri involved in transfer decisions?
“We involve him in all the decisions we make, and so he does. He cares a lot about the club’s strategy. It wasn’t easy for anyone, we had to reduce costs, manage the cash injection and decide the future strategy while he had to build a team.
“Now, we have a united group and we are building something more suitable for him.”
Will it be Allegri’s Juventus?
“No, it’s everyone’s team. It’s the team we projected all together, we are a united group and we are targeting what we decided together. We don’t have just one plan. If you follow the rumours, we will buy and sell everyone.
“I admit that this transfer word is fascinating. Sometimes I read names of some players on TV, so I call [sporting director] Federico Cherubini, asking him: ‘Are you in talks with this player?”
What does he reply?
“Are you drunk? [laughs]. Jokes aside, he is surprised. Sometimes, transfers lived from inside the club have comic and almost surreal implications.”