Quo vadis, Juventus?

Article 1

Definition

"We" means Juventus.

Article 2

State of Play

After seven matches, we have already picked up two defeats, following on from two draws, and just two wins. From the last four matches, we have gained a grand total of 2 points. In seven matches, our points tally is 9 points, on a par with Lecce. Above us, one can find footballing giants of the calibre of Catania, Atalanta, Udinese, Napoli and Genoa. For the third week running, our glorious name is gracing the bottom half of the table.

Article 3

The Coach

1. At the beginning of this season, coach Claudio Ranieri blurted out what he thought was a daring statement. "La parola scudetto non è un tabù." Winning the championship is not forbidden.

2. This statement was more revealing than anything else he might have said, anything he's doing, or whatever he will (probably never) achieve. Caro Mister, per la Juve lo scudetto non è mai un tabù, ma è un obbligo! The very reason for the existence of Juventus is so that they win trophies. For Juve, the runner-up position is considered a failure. But, quite clearly, the man is unaware of this fact, and that he's no longer coaching any ordinary Fiorentina, Udinese or Sampdoria. Josè Mourinho, in his inimitable way, highlighted this when he remarked about Ranieri: "He's almost seventy. He's hardly ever won anything. It's too late for him to change now."

Article 4

The Players

The Juve line-up nowadays includes such "stars" as Molinaro, Knezevic, Grygera, Salihamidzic. It regularly features Del Piero and Nedved, who are now well past their expiry date. Most of our best players are out injured, and their substitutes are hardly fit to play in any Serie A team.

Article 5

The Management

With the passage of time, we are beginning to look evermore like Inter used to be a few years in the past. Countless names of unknown foreign players are continuously bandied about as potential new recruits, supposedly to boost the team. And the string of successive years without any victory becomes ever longer.

Article 6

Future Prospects

1. Overall: bleak.

2. Short term - Champions League against Real Madrid this Tuesday. Dear God, please help us!

3. Medium term - if we're lucky we'll avoid relegation this season, unlike Milan in the early 80s, when they dropped back to Serie B, through the results of normal play, a couple of years after having been forced to play there due to the "calcioscommesse" scandal.

4. Long term - I fear a repeat of the post-1986 black period for Juve. This was a nine-year drought characterised by the following names (to mention just a few) - Rino Marchesi, Gigi Maifredi, Magrin, Galia, Ian Rush, Zavarov, Aleynikov, Alessio, Blanchard...