20 June at 11:34
At 11 am CEST Maurizio Sarri’s first press conference at Juventus will begin. Follow the words of the former Chelsea and Napoli manager live with Calciomercato.com and Lorenzo Bettoni, our correspondent in Turin.
“I’m happy to be here. My choice revolutionary? I don’t think so. In Napoli, I gave everything because I was born in Naples and as a child, I supported the club. In the last months in Napoli, I had a doubt about my affection and the logic told me that something was over. Napoli took my doubt by taking Ancelotti,” Sarri said.
“I went abroad not to move form Napoli to another Italian club. It was a wonderful experience at Chelsea, now I wanted to return to Italy. Juventus is the crown of a career. I think I have respected every and now my path needs to be respected.
“When Juve called me, the feeling was strong. I saw a very determined club that wanted to sign me. This is the reason that convinced me quickly.
“The game? I’m happy with the excitement in Serie A, it will be a stimulating year. Conte, Giampaolo, Fonseca, De Zerbi and Ancelotti, the level of coaches is on a rise.
“The Champions League? I am here to win matches. Juventus in Italy has a burden to win, while in Europe there are other 8-9 competitive teams. The Champions League is a dream with a monstrous difficulty coefficient.
“The 4-3-3? You can’t start from the formation to decide about the players, the first step is to study the characteristics of the players, talk to them and understand how they can make a difference. My 4-3-3 in Chelsea was a different formation compared to that at Napoli.
“I’m not going from amateurs to Juventus, I trained in Serie C, B and A, in the Premier League and now Juventus. A long path, now it is another step forward. I am emotional but it is not that of a coach signed from amateurs.
“Ronaldo? In recent years I have coached many strong players, at Chelsea and Napoli. Now I will train the top of the world, a guy with all the records. I’d like to take him to break even more records.
“I lived for three years in which I woke up in the morning and my first thought was to beat Juventus. I gave my 110% and we didn’t succeed. My professionalism, now, will lead me to give everything for Juventus.
“If I am a traitor? I have messages from my former players that would put everything into question. What someone says publicly is often influenced by where he is and where he plays.
“Ronaldo? I trained the player who broke a record of goals in Serie A [Higuain] and I would like to coach another one. Fans’ scepticism? It was like that everywhere with me: Empoli, Napoli, Chelsea. Everywhere I arrived there was scepticism. The only way to convince is to win.
“Dybala? When a player has the quality of Dybala and Ronaldo, he can play in any role.
“I won little, I think that the goal of having fun on the field is not antithetical to winning. If you play and have fun, it is the fuel that makes you go and make results.
“History tells us that coaches have won with opposing philosophies, opposing teams. It is important to be consistent with our own ideas, I think we can combine beautiful football with victories, even though I know it is difficult.
“A tracksuit? I don’t know. I’ll talk to the management. We didn’t talk about this. I would prefer not to go on the field in a suit, rather in an overall. The important thing is that at this age to not send me naked [laughs].
@LoreBetto
