Juve Legend Boniperti Bemoans Sale Of Zidane
Monday 29th October 2001
Juventus honorary chairman Giampiero Boniperti has added his voice to the chorus bemoaning the departure of Zinedine Zidane to Real Madrid. "If we still had Zidane with us, we would be top of the table," he claimed.
"It was a mistake to let him go. Juve must always keep their great stars. Zinedine is a great player at the peak of his career. I know that you can only make a great team with a great midfield, so I'll say forever: Zidane, Zidane, Zidane."
Boniperti's comments will not have endeared him to general manager Luciano Moggi, who sanctioned the �48 million sale over the summer.
They will also only heighten the pressure on Czech midfielder Pavel Nedved, who is still not at his best since signing from Lazio and was again disappointing in Saturday's goalless draw with Internazionale - Juve's fifth Serie A match without a win.
Boniperti, however, called for time to let Nedved settle in Turin. "It's not a good period for us," he said. "The team is potentially good and I'm sure that Nedved will come good soon. I remember that Michel Platini had to struggle in the first few months with us."
Boniperti is a legend of Italian football and Juve in particular. A Juventus man through-and-through, he came to the club as a talented teenager in 1946 and played right through in the black-and-white stripes until his retirement in 1961.
Along the way he set two records which are unlikely to be broken - he played 444 Serie A games for the club and scored 178 goals, making him the eighth highest scorer in the history of Serie A, a record equalled on Sunday by Roberto Baggio.
A prodigious goalscoring talent early in his career, he dropped back to a midfield role in later years to great effect. Surprisingly he did not get as many caps as his talent merited, playing 38 times for his country and scoring eight goals.
But five championships and two Italian Cups with Juve more than made up for that. It was no surprise that he continued to play a major role with the club he loved so much, becoming club president then honorary chairman.
