Vincenzo Iaquinta announces he will sign a contract extension with Juventus in the next few days, ending speculation over his future.
The World Cup winner had been linked with Tottenham and several Russian clubs, but offers of around £7m were reportedly rejected.
“The contract until 2013 is all done and dusted, we just need to sign on the dotted line, which should happen very soon,” he told ESPNsoccernet.it.
“The club proved it has faith in me and that means a lot, as since I’ve been here clearly I must’ve done something good.”
Although he struggled to find space in the side, Iaquinta has been instrumental in taking Juventus to the Champions League in the latter half of the season.
“Any player isn’t happy to be on the bench, but [Alessandro] Del Piero and Amauri were on great form and I realised I had to wait, then take my moment when it arrived.
“This is an important and prestigious side, one born to win. Soon we will triumph again and that is my personal objective too.”
The Bianconeri had plunged into a crisis that saw Claudio Ranieri sacked, while caretaker manager Ciro Ferrara is hoping to remain next season.
“I’d like to point out that the blame for those two terrible months also falls to the players, as we made repeated mistakes,” noted Iaquinta.
“It wasn’t a physical problem, perhaps it was psychological, as we didn’t approach games the right way. I’m not sure even we know what the real issue was.
“Before the game with Siena we were nervous and feared we’d miss out on the Champions League, but fortunately for us Milan and Fiorentina helped by not winning their matches last week.
“Ciro has settled in very quickly, is young and has a great future ahead of him, but the club makes the decisions on who is the Coach.”
Iaquinta will be in next term’s team and joined by new signing Diego, who arrives from Werder Bremen for around £25m.
“Diego is an important player who can help us make that step up in quality.”
|
