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| Thursday 1 November, 2007 |
| Blog: Mis-sold Ibra |
| Zlatan Ibrahimovic could come back to haunt Juventus this weekend, a situation which Antonio Labbate condemns the Old Lady for |
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No one can blame Juventus for selling Zlatan Ibrahimovic in the summer of 2006. They had just been demoted, they needed to reduce their huge salary costs and the player had made it clear that he wanted out after refusing to appear in a pre-season friendly. Yet handing over the Swede to a Serie A opponent in the form of Inter was a mistake which may not only cost them dearly at the weekend, but for some years to come.
Ibrahimovic is one of the most in-form players in the European game right now. Already one of the main protagonists in the Nerazzurri’s title stroll last term, he’s started this campaign in a similar fashion. If the injury-hit Milanese outfit are again at the top of the standings then they inevitably owe that to the performances of their Golden Ball winner in the making.
Of course, Ibrahimovic’s presence in the peninsula is fantastic for lovers of calcio, but his transfer to the blue and black side of the San Siro undoubtedly haunts the Old Lady and her followers. Luciano Moggi, for all his faults, would never have sold a player of Ibra’s calibre to a direct title rival for a fee of just £16.7m. His priority would have been to sell him to a foreign club like Real Madrid or Manchester United. He would probably have also commanded a bigger fee.
Juve’s error in accepting Inter’s offer, after also holding extensive talks with Milan, was born out of inexperience. Alessio Secco had just been promoted to sporting director, while new director general Jean-Claude Blanc and President Giovanni Cobolli Gigli had been thrown into a crisis of titanic proportions after the Calciopoli verdicts.
Nevertheless, the Ibra misjudgement is just one of a number of questionable decisions which Secco and Co have made since Moggi and close colleague Antonio Giraudo were shamed out of the game. Although they must be applauded in managing to convince the likes of Gigi Buffon, Pavel Nedved and David Trezeguet to sign new deals, they arguably flopped in the summer market seeing as only Vincenzo Iaquinta and Antonio Nocerino have made any substantial impact so far.
Adrian Mutu, also sold by Juventus in 2006 to Fiorentina, has already made an impression against his former club this season when he grabbed a late penalty in the Week 7 1-1 draw at the Franchi. Few would be surprised if Ibrahimovic also found his name on the score-sheet this Sunday night in Turin. It’s a scenario that Juve shouldn’t be facing. |
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Regardless of whom Juve sell for whatever fee, they remain a well-rounded side with an eye for talent, who are currently mounting a great title challenge. That being said, the sale of Zlatan was probably a black day in Juve’s past, but not one that will dearly affect their Scudetto campaign. Zlatan is a great player, but he can’t win Serie A on his own. After all, Milan have Kaka – one of the greatest players in the world, if not the greatest – and he can contribute much more to a team than Zlatan can. So where are Milan now? Tenth place…
Ali H. Khajah, Kuwait
I have to agree, Juventus selling a player like Ibrahimovic and even Patrick Vieira to a direct rival was a big mistake that was caused by the inexperience of Secco and company. To Ali’s comment about Ibra not being able to win Inter the Scudetto on his own – that’s true. But Ibrahimovic can and will probably make the difference for Inter for years to come. That being said, I think Juve have players capable of competing with them still.
Anthony Schirripa, Toronto, Canada
It's really hard to disagree with the article, especially with Ibra's match-changing skilful flicks and also his ability to take the game by the scruff of the neck which is what Juve lack at the moment. At 36, Nedved can hardly be expected to do that week in week out, but I'd rather have Nedved's spirit and professionalism than Ibra – who is something of a loose cannon! Saying that, I still feel that letting Zambrotta go was more of a calamity – I mean just look at Zebina!
Jitendra Kulkarni, London
Fans should also remember that when Juventus sold Ibrahimovic they were selling a striker who had managed only three Champions League goals in two seasons and had only scored seven goals in 33 appearances for a championship winning side. Obviously he has since improved on these figures, but a fee of nearly £17m was not bad business for a team who needed money fast. The combination of Trezeguet and Ibrahimovic was also not a convincing one. Inter should be more worried about Trez than Juventus should of Ibra!
Peter Hunter
Ibra is a player who commands the attention of the calcio world, but championships are won by teams and not by players. Agreed selling Ibra and Vieira to Inter was a terrible mistake, but Juventus have comfortably found themselves a place in the top half of the table. I share Jitendra's view as losing Zambrotta was a bigger blunder than that of Ibrahimovic.
Nikhil Rao
Ibra was one of the first to go after Juve's relegation, I think that was because he is one of those players who you don’t want in your team – especially if you are having problems. If you want to talk about bad deals then mention Henry, Maresca, Mutu…They all wanted to play for Juve but never got the chance to show their full potential.
Bara Elwani, Tripoli, Libya
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