Woke up this morning to the news that Juventus will not be renewing Alessandro Del Piero’s contract that runs out at the end of the season. I might not be a Juventus fan but some players are worth talking about and Del Piero is one of them.
A true legend by all standards, Del Piero and Juventus have over time become synonymous. Mention Juventus and the first thing that comes to mind is the 35 year old.
With a glittering career spanning 17 years, Del Piero is on course to equal and surpass Giampiero Boniperti’s league goal record of 178 goals. Del Piero is just one short of that.
This is not the first time such reports are being made and many fans are by now used to such speculations. Del Piero is only 35 and for Italian football, that is ‘pretty young’ to start thinking about retiring. Del Peiro has never talked about leaving Juventus and it is unlikely that Sandro Rosell will not renew his contract.
Such an action could make him the enemy of the fans so early in his tenure as club president. Del Piero has played more than 400 times for the Bianconeri ever since he joined the club in 1993.
Being the clubs all time goal scorer in the Champions League, UEFA competitions, Italia Super Coppa, international competitions amongst other honours, Del Piero is the darling of the Turin people.
He is the only Italian player to have ever scored twice in the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in the 2008-2009 Champions League. If these reports are true then Del Piero will remain with Juventus to take up a director’s role in the club.
That said, Juventus will want to give Del Piero a good send off. The Bianconeri are down to 7th in the league but are expected to continue with their impressive surge when league action resumes this weekend.
Juventus have easy fixtures in the form of Lecce and Bologna and getting maximum points from these two matches will greatly enhance their chances of winning the scudetto.
Photo credit: from franfiorini
