CSKA Offer Juve £6m for Almiron

CSKA Moscow have offered Juventus £6m for midfield flop Sergio Almiron, according to the Corriere dello Sport.

The Argentine schemer signed for the Bianconeri in the summer after three fine seasons with Empoli.

However he has dreadfully failed to live up to his tag as the “new Sebastian Veron” and is well down in the centre midfield pecking order, behind the likes of Antonio Nocerino, Cristiano Zanetti and even Tiago Mendes.

Almiron, the son of the 1986 World Cup winner Sergio Almiron Sr, is certain to leave Juventus in January and there are a whole host of interested parties.

So far Russian-outfit CSKA Moscow are the only club to have tabled a concrete bid, offering £6m for the 27-year-old.

However the Bianconeri are likely to entice bids from Fiorentina, Palermo and Lazio, who are all also interested.

In the case of Fiorentina, Juventus may ask for Manuel Pasqual to be added into any deal, with a similar scenario for Palermo with Andrea Barzagli, and Lazio with Stefano Mauri.

Almiron has played a total of seven Serie A games this campaign, starting just five of these matches.

www.goal.com - 13/12/2007 18:52

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Chiellini: We Need A Miracle To Overtake Inter

Giorgio Chiellini says that Juventus require a minor miracle to finish above Inter this season, while he also explains how happy he is to be a Bianconero.

The ex-Fiorentina man was close to moving to Sven-Goran Eriksson’s Manchester City after a disagreement with the club in the summer, but in the end he remained at Juve.

“I am happy to have stayed a Bianconero,” Chiellini told Tuttosport.

“If I’d have moved clubs I would have committed a big mistake.”

The 23-year-old has since switched into the centre of defence and has been in outstanding form alongside the re-born Nicola Legrottaglie.

Juventus are going well in third position in Serie A, however they still find themselves eight points behind runaway leaders Inter.

“Realistically to finish above Inter will be difficult and will require a minor miracle because the Nerazzurri have shown their superiority,” Chiellini explained.

“However we want to keep going and earn a place in the Champions league and then in life you never know what could happen.”

Chiellini will next be in action on Saturday night as Juventus travel to the Stadio Olimpico to face struggling Lazio.

www.goal.com - 13/12/2007 18:49

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Gigli Admits Van Der Vaart Interest

Rafael Van der Vaart’s potential transfer from Hamburg to Juventus moved another step closer after Giovanni Cobolli Gigli admitted the Bianconeri’s interest in the player.

The Dutch midfielder is virtually certain to leave the Bundesliga at the end of the current season, as he has a clause in his contract which will allows him to be sold for just £1m in 2009.

Hamburg will thus avoid the risk of this taking place by cashing in on their star man next summer.

A host of big European clubs have been linked with a move for the 24-year-old including Valencia and Inter Milan, but Juventus have emerged as strong favourites for his signature in the past few days.

“For sure we will return to the market and we are at looking around for players for the summer,” said Juve President Cobolli Gigli.

“We will buy players of a certain calibre, someone on the level of Van der Vaart.”

Van der Vaart himself opened up a path for a move by admitting he would move to a big club like Juventus.

“I will only leave Hamburg for a big club, such as Juventus,” the ex-Ajax man told Voetbal International.

“I know that they are interested and if the Bianconeri were to make me a concrete offer I would consider it very carefully.”

www.goal.com - 13/12/2007 18:16

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Agent: Criscito Going Nowhere In January

Domenico Criscito will not be moving to Fiorentina or any other club during the January transfer window, according to his agent Sandro Gedda.

The 20-year-old is widely regarded as one of the most promising young defenders in Italy, and has been described as the “new Fabio Cannavaro”.

However despite playing some absolutely outstanding games with the Italy Under-21 team, he has struggled badly with Juventus this season.

After starting the campaign as a regular starter, the youngster has gradually fallen out of the reckoning and he was given a horrid tide by Francesco Totti during the week four draw with Roma.

This has all led to talk that Criscito will leave Turin in January, possibly on loan, and Fiorentina, Palermo and Genoa are three teams that have been linked with a move.

“Honestly, I haven’t ever had any contact with Fiorentina for Criscito,” Gedda told Viola Gol.

“There is no news and I think that Juventus will want to keep hold of him as he is a quality player with a big future.

“He will certainly stay in January and there is an agreement in place for June that Genoa get first refusal if he is sent out on loan.”

Juventus secured full-ownership of Criscito in January of this year, by buying out the remaining 50 per cent of his contract from Genoa.

www.goal.com - 13/12/2007 17:45

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Van Der Vaart: I Am Ready For Juve

Hamburg midfielder Rafael Van der Vaart has admitted that he is ready to join Juventus. The 24-year-old playmaker joined the Bundesliga club in 2005 but is now desperate to test himself in a stronger league.

He seemed all set for a move to Valencia in the summer, however Hamburg scrapped the deal at the very last minute.

Van der Vaart is tied to the Germans until 2010, however due to a special clause in his contract he will be able to leave the club a year earlier for just £1m.

Hamburg are thus almost certain to sell their prized asset at the end of the season and a number of Serie A clubs, including Inter and Juventus have been linked.

Yesterday the Bianconeri were associated with a swap deal including Argentine flop Sergio Almiron, who has been a huge disappointment in Turin since signing from Empoli.

Either way it seems that Van der Vaart is ready to sign for Claudio Ranieri’s men if they come in with a serious offer.

“I will only leave Hamburg for a big club, such as Juventus,” said the Dutchman.

“If the Italian team were to make a serious offer, I would pay attention to it and I think that Hamburg are ready to do a deal.”

www.goal.com - 13/12/2007 12:56

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Juventus Remember Giovannino Agnelli

Ten years ago, on December 13 1997, the whole of Italy mourned the passing of Giovanni Alberto Agnelli, Dr. Umberto’s son. In the day of the 10th anniversary of his death, Juventus join in remembering “Giovannino”, a wonderful person and a huge Juventus fan.

www.juventus.com - 13 December 2007

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Buffon Happy With Juventus Form

Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon believes the team are doing well, and is not perturbed by the eight-point difference between them and league-leaders Inter.

“Being eight points back from Inter can be read in two ways,” Buffon told Tuttosport.

“In a normal year, we would already be disappointed and be dismissing the season as a failure and in December we would be concentrating on next year.

“However, this is not a normal year as we are newly promoted and we have the potential to return to the highest level.

“We are third in the table and we want to stay there or better.”

Buffon believes that Juventus are more than capable of finishing in the top-four and qualifying for next season’s Champions League.

“Champions League qualification is more than possible and it would be such a good achievement after the pre-season predictions,” the 29-year-old insisted.

“What sets us apart from other sides is the fact that we are still humble and determined.”

www.goal.com - 13/12/2007 12:11

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