Juventus (Italy)

Juventus FC is one of the most famous names in Italian, and indeed world football. The club from the northern city of Turin was formed in late 1897 as Sport-Club Juventus by pupils of the Massimo D'Azeglio Lyceum school. In 1899 the club was renamed Foot-Ball Club Juventus.

Stadio Comunale in 1990

Businessman Ajmone-Marsan assisted with finances to allow the club to move from a field at Piazza d'Armi to a new ground; Velodrome Umberto I. The team initially played in pink shirts, but changed to black and white stripes after being inspired by Notts County.

The club collected their first Italian championship in 1904-05. Following a split at the club a year later, some members departed to form FBC Torino. For the next few years Juventus consolidated and gradually built up the club.

Edoardo Agnelli, the owner of Fiat Automobiles purchased the club in 1923, building the new Stadio di Corso Marsiglia for the team to play. A second Scudetto (league title) came in 1925-26 as Alba Roma were hammered on aggregate in the national final.

The club became the first Italian side to go professional in the 1930’s, which helped as Juve won five consecutive league titles in 1930-31, 1931-32, 1932-33, 1933-34 and 1934-35. Carlo Carcano was the team manager for the first four of the triumphs with star players Raimundo Orsi, Luigi Bertolini, Giovanni Ferrari and Luis Monti helping towards Italy winning the World Cup in 1934.

Two Coppa Italia wins arrived at the club in 1937-38, after a 5-1 aggregate win over AC Torino and then again in 1941-42 as Milano were also overcome 5-1 with Riza Lushta netting a hat trick in the second leg. The club had moved to the Stadio Mussolini as the Stadio Comunale and then Stadio Olimpico di Torino was originally known as for the 1933-34 campaign.

After World War Two, Englishman Jesse Carver had a spell in charge of ‘Vecchia Signora’, The Old Lady, leading the team to the title in 1949-50 with Giampiero Boniperti starring following an era of domination from city rivals Torino, before their team was wiped out in the Superga disaster. 

A ninth title came in 1951-52 with György Sárosi in charge of the team and John Hansen top scoring with assistance from fellow Danes Carl Aage Præst and Karl Aage and the creative skills of Pasquale Vivolo.

Two new forwards were signed at the club in 1957-58 in the shape of John Charles and Omar Sivori, who joined stalwart Boniperti. The forward line proved lethal as the Serie A title was collected by I bianconeri (the black and whites) under Ljubiša Broćić. 

Juve lifted the Coppa Italia again in 1958-59 as Omar Sívori netted twice in a 4-1 win against Internazionale, before the league and cup double was completed in 1959-60 with Charles bagging a brace in the 3-2 extra time win against Fiorentina.

Charles would go on to be voted as Juve’s greatest ever foreign player during the club’s centenary. He was nicknamed Il Gigante Buono – The Gentle Giant, as he was never sent off or cautioned in his entire career despite playing equally well as centre back or centre forward.

The cup was lifted once again in 1964-65 thanks to a Giampaulo Minichelli goal in a 1-0 win against Internazionale, with a solitary Serie A title arriving in 1966-67 under the management of Heriberto Herrera. 

The 1970’s would see Juventus re-establish itself as the major player in Italian football following defeat on away goals in the final of the 1970-71 Inter Cities Fairs Cup Final against Leeds United.

Former Juve winger Čestmír Vycpálek was in charge of the team as Serie A titles were won in 1971-72 and 1972-73 with players such as Roberto Bettega, Fabio Capello, Franco Causio and José Altafini establishing themselves in the team. The team suffered defeat on penalties to Milan in the final of the Coppa Italia in the latter of the campaigns.

Italian keeper Dino Zoff formed a safe rearguard after his signing from Mantova. Gaetano Scirea would be the next starlet to break through as another title followed in 1974-75 with Oscar Damiani adding goals.

The 1976-77 season would see double celebration at Stadio Comunale as the clubs former midfielder Giovanni Trapattoni took charge of team affairs. The Serie A crown was collected for the seventeenth time as well as the clubs first European honour as the UEFA Cup was won on away goals as Athletic Bilbao were defeated with assistance of a Marco Tardelli goal.

Trapattoni’s side would go on to win the league once again in 1977-78 with Roberto Boninsegna playing a leading role before heading into the 80’s, where once again they would dominate both at home and abroad. 

The Coppa Italia was lifted in 1978-79 with a 2-1 extra time win against Palermo, while the goals of Paulo Rossi boosted the team as league titles were won 1980-81 and 1981-82. The following season saw the lifting of the Coppa Italia for the seventh time as Verona were defeated on away goals in the two legged final.

In the 1983-84 campaign a Serie A win was doubled up with the lifting of the European Cup Winners Cup as FC Porto were overcome 2-1 in the final at St. Jakob Stadium in Basel thanks to goals from Beniamino Vignola and Polish star signing Zbigniew Boniek. 

By this time Juve had recruited overseas with the Pole joining Michel Platini to form a formidable partnership. The Frenchman was rated as one of the world's best being crowned as European Footballer of the Year three years in a row; 1983, 1984 and 1985.

The end of the 1984-85 season would see triumph and disaster. The final of the European Cup was staged at Heysel Stadium in Brussels, despite the venue being in a poor state of repair. The match saw Juve matched up against Liverpool, whose support carried a section of volatile fans.

Overcrowding, an inadequate stadium and violence led to thirty nine Juventus fans being killed when some retreated after a charge from English fans, leading to crushing and walls crumbling. The game went ahead and was decided by a Platini penalty in a subdued atmosphere.

All English club sides were banned from European competition for five years as a result of the disaster. Juve went on to win the Intercontinental Cup with a win on penalties over Argentinos Juniors in Tokyo with Michael Laudrup being the latest star to the join the club. Trapottoni’s reign ended as the club once again won Serie A in the 1985-86 season.

Rino Marchesi and then Dino Zoff were the next team bosses. Zoff’s side lifted the 1990-91 Coppa Italia with a 1-0 aggregate win over Milan, as the club moved into the Stadio delle Alpi, which had been built for the 1990 World Cup.

Luigi Maifredi and a returning Trapottoni failed to add to honours. It would be under Marcello Lippi that the club once again played a major part in Italian football as a side was built around players such as Gianluca Vialli, Ciro Ferrara, Roberto Baggio, Alessandro Del Piero and Fabrizio Ravenelli.

The league and cup double was won in 1994-95 as Parma were defeated 3-0 on aggregate in the Coppa Italia final as Sergio Porrini scoring in both legs to avenge defeat in the UEFA Cup final in the same season when Parma came out as 2-1 winners on aggregate. 

The success led to a run in the Champions League in 1995-96, which went all the way to the final at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. A Ravenelli goal in a 1-1 draw against Ajax led to the game going to penalties, in which Juve triumphed with Angelo Peruzzi the goalkeeping hero along with defenders Pietro Vierchowod, Ciro Ferrara and midfielder Paulo Sousa.

The club didn’t rest on its laurels, with Zinedine Zidane, Filippo Inzaghi and Edgar Davids being added to the squad. The league title was retained in 1996-97 while Juve once again went all the way to the Champions League final. 

Despite being strong favourites in the lead up to the game, they went down 3-1 to Borussia Dortmund at Munich’s Olympiastadion. A third successive Serie A followed in 1997-98 and the team reached a third consecutive final of the Champions League. This time Juve were defeated 1-0 by Real Madrid at the Amsterdam ArenA.

Lippi moved on to be replaced by Carlo Ancelotti prior to Lippi returning as his side won Serie A in 2001-02, with Gianluigi Buffon, David Trezeguet, Pavel Nedvěd and Lilian Thuram featuring heavily. The team were denied the double when they lost the Coppa final on away goals against Parma.

The sudetto was retained in 2002-03 with Juve going on to yet another Champions League final in 2004. This time they would lose out to Milan on penalties after a 0-0 draw at Old Trafford.

Fabio Capello became coach in 2004, leading Juventus to two more Serie A titles in 2004-05 with Zlatan Ibrahimović topping the scoring and in 2005-06. However, Juve were found to be one of five clubs guilty in a betting scandal. The titles were stripped from the club, with the team being demoted to Serie B.

It was at this time that the club moved back to a renovated Stadio Comunale which was now named the Stadio Olimpico di Torino. Stadio delle Alpi was extremely unpopular with supporters with its size and the pitch being so far from the stands. Plans were put forward for the club to rebuild their own stadium on the delle Alpi site, with a threat of leaving the city being levered over the authorities.

Ibrahimović and Fabio Cannavaro left the club along with Capello following the relegation, while many others remained loyal. Didier Deschamps arrived as the new team boss leading Juve to the Serie B title in 2006-07. Spells from Claudio Ranieri, Ciro Ferrara, Alberto Zaccheroni and Luigi Delneri followed as Juve tried to repeat former glories.

In 2011 a court found that Juve’s relegation had been without merit. The former general manager Luciano Moggi's conviction in criminal court in connection with the scandal was thrown out and Juventus were handed back the lost Scudetti in exchange for Juventus dropping the lawsuit against the FIGC (Italian FA).

The new Juventus Stadium opened for the 2011-12 season, with stands closer to the pitch than before and helping to create a great atmosphere. This obviously helped the team who ended unbeaten throughout the entire season to lift the Serie A title under the stewardship of Antonio Conte, before being denied a double when going down 3-1 to Napoli in the Coppa Italia final.

Andrea Pirlo, Mirko Vučinić and Del Piero were major players of the period along with the rock steady Buffon in goal. Conte’s side retained the Serie A title in 2012-13 and collected their thirtieth Scudetto in 2013-14 before the boss departed to take the Italian national team job.

Massimiliano Allegri arrived as the new manager and his side went on to be crowned as Serie A champions in 2014-15. The team also reached the Champions League final, but eventually went down 3-1 to FC Barcelona at the Olympiastadion in Berlin. 

The Coppa Italia was lifted for the tenth time with a 2-1 victory over Lazio in the final with Carlos Tevez, Giorgio Chiellini and Fernando Llorente starring throughout the season. An extra time goal from Alvaro Morata was enough to defeat Milan the following season to retain the trophy, while Juve retained the Serie A title.

The club became Italian champions for a thirty third time in 2016-17 with help of the midfield guile of Miralem Pjanić as the team also reached the Champions League final where they were defeated 4-1 by Real Madrid at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. However, Juventus still completed the domestic double when Lazio were beaten 2-0 in the Coppa Italia final.

It was another league and cup double in 2017-18 as the dominance continued with the Argentinian pair of Paulo Dybala and Gonzalo Higuaín putting away the goals provided by Douglas Costa. The Coppa was collected for a thirteenth time with a 4-0 hammering of Milan.

Giorgio Chiellini continued to lead the defence while the side was boosted with the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo as they ran away with another Serie A title in 2018-19. Maurizio Sarri was appointed as new head coach in the summer of 2019. Juve were defeated in the Copa Italia final of 2019-20 on penalties by Napoli.

The season was suspended for three months owing to the COVID-19 but it would take more than a pandemic to derail Juve as they powered towards a ninth consecutive Serie A title.

Juventus will compete in Serie A for the 2020-21 season.

My visits

England 1 West Germany 1 (West Germany won 5-3 on penalties) Wednesday 4th July 1990 (World Cup Semi Final) att: 62,628 (Stadio delle Alpi)

I had travelled to Italy for the World Cup better known as Italia 90 with Nick, my youngest brother. We had been to England’s previous games against Belgium and Cameroon and we had now arrived in Turin quite anxious whether we would get tickets or not. 

We had made friends with some great lads along the way: Billy from Rugby (Leeds), Darren (AFC Bournemouth), Keith (Millwall), Brian (Aston Villa) and John (Portsmouth). We stuck together and found a great way of getting railway compartments to ourselves. We just took our trainers off! Billy had two mates who cleared off after the group stages so he gave us their vouchers.

We stayed on an organised camp site, which was basically a community athletics stadium which had toilets and showers. We had tents which saved money. The hut where tickets were being distributed from was just outside in a park. The ticket allocation was ridiculous. England fans were being severely discriminated against. FIFA allotted the Germans a ridiculous proportion more than we got. 

The FA fought to get some more tickets but they struggled. This didn’t surprise any of us in any way. We were about as welcome as a fart in a spacesuit. Somehow we managed to get two tickets. Indeed, I think all of our group got sorted. We all agreed that we would not admit to anyone that we had any. Fans were getting desperate for them so it was a case of safety first.

The day of the game came around and we were nervous but in a good mood. Italy had been knocked out in the other semi final the night before by Argentina. This was wonderful news after the way they had been treating us. How we laughed at Maradona and his boys winning on penalties. How little we knew. 

Nick and Darren cleared off to Milan for the day to have a look at the San Siro. It was going to be a long day on the camp site. Everyone was uptight, not just because of the game, but the events of the night before. It had been rumoured that Juventus fans were seeking revenge at some point for Heysel. They had decided it was to be last night.

To read more about the camp site and its happenings, click here.

On the camp site a few games of football broke out on the pitch inside the camp. I went out to a convenience store with someone else. The booze ban had been implemented, so there was no chance of getting a beer. I had never been so relieved to see our transport arrive. Once again we were packed onto the buses like sardines for our escort to the stadium. It was about ninety minutes before kick off when we were ushered inside.

The Stadio delle Alpi was in the middle of nowhere. It looked an impressive sight from outside, with its triangular towers holding the roof up from behind either goal. The stadium didn’t look too high one tier had been built below ground level. The stadium consisted of two large tiers of grey coloured seats only interrupted behind the goals by the scoreboards.

We were on the top deck to the left of a goal. The players and media side was to our left. It was mainly German fans around us. The main body of England fans were at the far end. We were outnumbered, no thanks to our hosts and FIFA.

The game itself was going far too well. Rudi Voller had limped off and England were generally on top. Chances were been made and we were fairly happy as half time came and went. The Germans got back into the game and although England settled again, they went behind in very unlucky circumstances as a Brehme free kick deflected off Paul Parker and over Peter Shilton.

Time was running out and there didn’t look like a way back, when Parker aimed a ball towards the German box. Gary Lineker controlled it and drilled it back into the corner of the net. We were in perfect line with it as it went in. We were happy with going to extra time as Chris Waddle and Paul Gascoigne were having great games going forward. 

Indeed Waddle had hit the bar from miles out and in extra time he hit the post. Surely we were going to score? Then Gazza was booked. It seemed to knock the stuffing out of us all. He was the player of the tournament and our inspiration. It was made even more galling by the German rolling around as though he’d been shot.

The game went to penalties. We all know how it ended.

I was devastated. It was all too much for me. We’d been treated like animals but we’d stuck together and made friends with pals from all over the country. We’d slept on mud in cheap camp sites and gone ages without hot water. Our team had been the best on the night and indeed provided three of the best games of the tournament, but we still lost. It all just seemed so unfair.

I will never forget a couple of Republic of Ireland fans laughing and cheering near us when the Germans won. The authorities kept us back for what seemed like a lifetime so we could watch the stadiums closing ceremony. An announcement went out that apparently said that Italy had been reinstated as Maradona and another Argentinian had failed drugs tests. It proved to be a hoax, but it fired up a lot of England fans.

We got back to the camp site where plenty of England fans consoled each other and talked the game over, while regaling more tails of gross criminal policing. Just to round off a terrible evening a couple of England fans were allegedly stabbed by some rogue locals. I slept on the terraced steps of the arena with plenty more who were determined to be on their guard as it was deemed safer than falling asleep in the tents.

I was so glad I went to see the film “One Night in Turin” when it was released in May 2010. It brought back so many reminders and encapsulated the mood of the day. I recommend it thoroughly, ideally buying it and donating some money to the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation at the same time.

We were so close to being world champions again, but it was not to be. More than that, it was so great to be in the company of so many people who looked after each other and created special bonds and refused to be beaten by the authorities.

RIP Sir Bobby

Juventus 1 Genoa 0 (Wednesday 3^rd February 2016) Serie A (att: 37,151)

Turin had really impressed me the previous year when I’d only visited for a few hours around the Torino v Sampdoria match. I wanted to return for a Juve game and see what had happened to the old Stadio Del Alpi.

I’d arrived the previous night via a flight to Bergamo and then a couple of trains, changing in Milan. My evening had been spent mainly in Murphy’s pub to watch the Leicester City v Liverpool game after a nice walk through the beautiful old city once I’d checked in at the traditional Hotel Artua & Solferino just off Re Umberto.

Match day had been spent sightseeing, visiting three local amateur club grounds as well as Parco Ruffini, which brought back many memories from Italia 90. A fine calzone at a nice restaurant before a walk and siesta meant I was ready for the evening’s entertainment.

While I didn’t want to be rushing to the stadium, I also didn’t want be hanging around either. I met middle ground by walking to the XVIII Decembre metro station and going into a café bar for a pre match beer. The tap said it was Thwaites Golden Ale. I wasn’t convinced but it was OK and the pretty two young ladies serving and giving me a free bowl of cheese footballs found the way to my heart!

The metro took me a couple of stops to Bernini where a special tram soon arrived over the road to go straight to the stadium. I was surprised that it wasn’t packed? Surely not everyone else was already there?

It was quite a long journey through the city streets. I recognised some of the route from my visit to AC Lucento that morning, before we continued on to the mass open space around Juventus Stadium. I noted where the stop was in regards to the stadium. The first thing to note was that the triangular shaped towers at each end were still in place from before.

My ticket was in the upper tier in the corner. It was in exactly the opposite corner to where I’d been for the World Cup semi-final. It meant walking past the heavily policed away fans section. I had to show my ticket to get past the first security post and then walk up the large ramp to the turnstiles where my ticket was checked along with my passport to make sure that they matched.

The vast concourses sold the usual football fare and drinks. I could walk around to see the ground from a different angle. I opted to have a very disappointing bratwurst, which was well underdone. It was too cold for a beer. Instead I went o find my seat and take it all in.

Juventus Stadium was two continuous tiers all around and close to the pitch. The much disliked running track and stands were long gone, with the new structure keeping in the atmosphere and affording excellent views. My only criticism was that they’d been very tight with leg room and spacing between the seats. It wasn’t helped by the two couples at the end of the row refusing to stand to let fans through. My ticket cost €40. There were no programmes issued.

Juve were on an equal record breaking winning run of twelve games. Massimiliano Allegri’s side also had the meanest defence in Serie A. They were just behind Napoli at the top of the table. Genoa hovered just above the relegation places with their rivals Sampdoria.

Juve started off on top as Paulo Dybala had a shot going just wide. Paul Pogba was a monster in the middle of the park. He looked bigger, faster and stronger than everyone else. Genoa had a fine spell of possession, but the home defence kept them at bay.

The deadlock was broken after thirty minutes as midfielder Juan Cuadrado on loan from Chelsea and making a first start for many weeks, went on a fine run before attempting a cross which was diverted into his own net by Sebastian De Maio.

Patrice Evra was also making a rare start for Juve, but he went off injured before the break. Immediately after the restart Gianluigi Buffon was forced to make an awkward save from Alessio Cerci. The visiting Genoa fans only took the lower tier of their allocation, but they were making a real noise all the match as their team had plenty of play.

Simone Zaza replaced Alvaro Morata after fifty four minutes and he should have doubled the lead with his first touch, but he shot weakly straight at Mattia Perin in the visitors goal. Chances were at a premium, thanks mainly to the excellent Juve defence who were giving a perfect example of match management.

Cuadrado was continuing to impress with his energy as the game was reaching its climax. The home side weren’t helped as the game entered injury time when Zaza mindlessly hacked down Armando Izzo from behind and was quite rightly shown a red card by referee Carmine Russo.

Juve went to a record breaking thirteenth consecutive win and I was off trying to break records to get to the trams. I did very well and squeezed onto the first one back into the city. It took me all the way to Porta Nuova station. Despite the temptation I didn’t fancy a beer. 8.45 pm kick offs on the continent in cold weather led to an urge for a warm bed!

I really enjoyed my visit once again to Turin. It really is an underestimated city. I recommend it for a short break, even more so if you enjoy going to a match. I caught the bus the following morning from Porta Nuova to the airport, which took around forty minutes, and giving a brief glimpse of Juventus Stadium.