UNITED Ed can learn from Juventus – both on and off pitch...
ED Woodward was so impressed by the work of Juventus in the transfer market that he snared one of their not-so-secret weapons, Javier Ribalta, in the summer of 2017.
Barely a year later, the senior scouting manager had left Old Trafford to become sporting director at Zenit St Petersburg without making his mark – and United were no closer to a coherent transfer strategy.
Indeed, that is one of the main reasons why Woodward wants to appoint a technical director for the first time in the Reds’ history following an extensive overhaul of the club’s scouting department in recent years.
That model has worked well at Juventus and City – where everyone sings from the same hymn sheet.
Juventus’ set-up has been so effective because football men – Andrea Agnelli, Giuseppe Marrotta, Fabio Paratici and Massimiliano Allegri – have all helped make the key decisions with recruitment.
Broadly speaking, Juventus target two kinds of players:
1. Peak-aged footballers who had a point to prove or more to give, such as Dani Alves, Patrice Evra, Fernando Llorente, Hernanes, Sami Khedira, Mario Mandzukic, Carlos Tevez and Leonardo Bonucci (the second time).
2. Younger talents whose value would rocket in the right set-up: Kingsley Coman, Paulo Dybala, Miralem Pjanic, Alex Sandro, Alvaro Morata and Rodrigo Bentancur.
It was a policy that did not sit well with Antonio Conte, who once moaned ‘you can’t eat in a 100 euro restaurant with only 10 euro in your pocket’ before walking out on the second day of pre-season in 2014. But it has been at the heart of Juventus’ seven Serie A titles, four Coppa Italias, three Italian Super Cups and two Champions League finals in the past seven years.
So much so that there is now money available for a marquee name – as was the case in the heady days in the 90s.
Gonzalo Higuain and Cristiano Ronaldo were seen as the kind of players who could take the team onto the next level when it comes to ending the Juevntus ‘drought in Europe’ – and that is why the Old Lady took the bold step of relaxing their wage structure.
When you factor in how Juventus have made that work after paying off the costs of moving into a new stadium, that shows you how everyone is pulling in the same direction behind the scenes.
Even if United are still above the Old Lady in those Deloitte most valuable club rankings – which seem to matter more to certain figures within the club than on-the-field success – the fact of the matter is Juventus have bought well and seven of their 10 most expensive ever signings are still playing at the club and all thriving.
United have spent plenty of money in recent years, even if Mourinho feels he could have been backed more, but the gulf in class between the two sides on Tuesday night was alarming.
It has been some time now since United defeated a genuine heavyweight in the Champions League – Chelsea in 2011 perhaps? – and that wait looks set to go on.
For a while yet, at least.