Juventus Target Top Trio
Tuesday 3rd April 2001
Juventus are reported to want to sign Lilian Thuram, Kily Gonzalez and Christian Vieri for next season as they look to rebuild after a disappointing campaign. Veteran defender Ciro Ferrara, meanwhile, has admitted the race for the Scudetto is almost lost.
The Turin club are out of the Champions' League, Coppa Italia and nine points adrift of leaders Roma in Serie A.
The situation has left coach Carlo Ancelotti looking to the future, and reports in Italy claim Parma's Thuram, Kily Gonzalez of Valencia and Inter's Christian Vieri are top of his shopping list.
The Juventus board held a three-hour meeting on Monday night focussing on new signings, when Ancelotti asked for a first-class defender, midfielder and striker.
They will face heavy competition from AC Milan to sign Thuram, Kily Gonzalez is also likely to be in high demand, while Vieri may stay at Inter if the Nerazzurri qualify for the Champions' League.
Juventus general manager Luciano Moggi said of this season: "We made a few good signings in the summer, like David Trezeguet, but we have had many injuries. The fact is that Roma are young and strong and confident this year. They have the best defence and the best attack.
"We have to look at our budget. We don't want to pay too much for one player. We have to look at the situation as a whole."
Defender Ciro Ferrara, meanwhile, admitted that Roma had a "70 per cent chance of winning the Scudetto."
"We only have a 30 per cent chance," he added. "Roma are confident and playing well. It will be very difficult for us to catch them. We have made some mistakes but Roma haven't made any, and you can only congratulate them for that."
