Juventus target Liverpool trio

• Poignant

  25 Jan 10, 17:42

  Report: Ciro Ferrara Set For Juventus Sacking

  Time is up for the Neapolitan who will be shown the door in the coming hours.

  

  Ciro Ferrara - Allenatore Juventus - Serie A

  
  

  Serie A giants Juventus have decided to dismiss coach Ciro Ferrara after the Bianconeri stumbled to their third straight league defeat last night.
  
  The revelation comes from Turin-based daily La Stampa, which is managed by a holding company of the Fiat Group whose president is Juve patron John Elkann.
  
  The newspaper claims that Ferrara is on borrowed time after last night’s 2-1 reverse at the hands of Roma and the club directors will hand him the pink slip in the next 48 hours.
  
  Juve president Jean-Claude Blanc is reportedly still hoping to grant Ferrara yet another stay of execution, but the owners appear to have made up their mind.
  
  It is only a matter of picking Ferrara’s successor, and Russia boss Guus Hiddink remains in pole position to take over the Stadio Olimpico hot seat.
  
  Hiddink was approached by the Old Lady two weeks ago and allegedly demanded wages of €3.5 million to commit to the club for the next six months.
  
  A decision is expected shortly as Juve will be back in action on Thursday when they face Inter in the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia at San Siro.
  

• Rooney9

  25 Jan 10, 18:05

  a club like Juventus can employ a rookie like him, thinking he can bring the former giants to glory, had better wake up. Milan, another giant, employ a rookie manager in Leonardo. they think that every manager is like Pep Guardiola, a rookie manager that won a treble with Barcelona in his first season.

• stellazio

  25 Jan 10, 18:07

  im really surprised he could even last this long..

• Poignant

  25 Jan 10, 19:23

  this is really good news for liverpool, hope juventus will come knocking on rafael's door and beg him to follow them back to italy

• As romanista2001

  25 Jan 10, 20:26

  Benitez will lead Juve to the league title..........................the Serie B title.............LOL

   

  Juve should try to go for Fiorentina's Cesare Prandelli, he can do well with little money..............just like when he was at cash-strapped Parma............

• zocoss

  26 Jan 10, 11:09

  Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez's agent stirs it up with link to prospective Juventus job
  

   

  

  Italian job: Benitez is in the frame for the Juve job

   

  Rafa Benitez's agent left the door open for an approach by Juventus.

  Under-fire Juve coach Ciro Ferrera is on the verge of being sacked after a third straight defeat, and the Liverpool manager is the preferred choice to revive their flagging fortunes.

  Manuel Garcia Quilon, Benitez’s agent, refused to rule out a switch, saying: ‘Benitez to Juventus? In football, you never know. I do not know what will happen in four to five months. In football, everything changes quickly, but the basic principle is that Rafa still has a four-year contract with Liverpool.’

  Though Benitez has repeatedly expressed his loyalty to Liverpool, and particularly appreciates continued backing from fans, he could be tempted by a move to Serie A.

  He is a close friend of recently-appointed director Roberto Bettega, an influential figure in the Juventus boardroom, and sees the job as one of the biggest in Europe.

  Liverpool co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett recently voiced their support for Benitez but continue to deny him funds.

  Even Monday’s £310million sale of Hicks’s Texas Rangers baseball team failed to improve matters, with Benitez admitting he still had to sell before he could buy.

• MaNyZeR

  26 Jan 10, 11:41

  NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  Liverpool needs benitez to finish outside the top 4!!!!!!

• Poignant

  26 Jan 10, 21:35

  Report: Juventus Seal Ciro Ferrara’s Fate

  The Bianconeri are ready to swing the axe on the tactician after yesterday’s board meeting.

  

  Ciro Ferrara - Juventus (Getty Images)

  
  

  Serie A giants Juventus have taken yet another decisive step towards dismissing coach Ciro Ferrara after tax attorney Michele Briamonte attended yesterday’s board meeting at Vinovo, according to Sportmediaset.it.
  
  Briamonte joined President Jean-Claude Blanc, vice director general Roberto Bettega and sporting director Alessio Secco.
  
  And the former’s presence is said to be a definite signal that the Old Lady has decided to part company with Ferrara and are willing to have a clear picture of the Neapolitan’s contractual situation.
  
  Juve have lost six of their last eight games and last weekend’s home defeat to Roma proved to be the final straw.
  
  Ferrara is now expected to be shown the door later this week, presumably after the Coppa Italia quarter-final tie away to Inter and regardless of the outcome of that clash.
  
  But the club’s powers that be have yet to agree on a successor. Gianluca Vialli, Dino Zoff and Giovanni Trapattoni have all reportedly rejected the opportunity to take over on a caretaker basis, while Russia boss Guus Hiddink is believed to be holding out for a lavish salary of €6 million for the next six months. 
  

• Poignant

  26 Jan 10, 21:37

  Hiddink tipped to replace Juventus-bound Benitez at Liverpool

  Guus Hiddink is being linked with a move to Liverpool.

  The Guardian says Juventus' pursuit of Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez has sparked talk of Hiddink replacing the Spaniard at Anfield.

  Several Italian newspapers are reporting that, should Benítez accept the ­Juventus offer, Hiddink would replace him at Anfield. They include La Stampa, which is owned by the Exor investment company and whose chairman, John Elkann, is also vice-chairman of Juventus and the grandson of the club's late former owner, Gianni Agnelli.

  Last week Liverpool officials rejected claims by Hiddink's agent that they had made an approach for the Dutchman.

• iveco

  26 Jan 10, 21:56

  Does this mean Hiddink is leaving his job in Moscow for good?

• brokenluv

  26 Jan 10, 22:14

  Originally posted by Poignant:

  Hiddink tipped to replace Juventus-bound Benitez at Liverpool

  Guus Hiddink is being linked with a move to Liverpool.

  The Guardian says Juventus' pursuit of Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez has sparked talk of Hiddink replacing the Spaniard at Anfield.

  Several Italian newspapers are reporting that, should Benítez accept the ­Juventus offer, Hiddink would replace him at Anfield. They include La Stampa, which is owned by the Exor investment company and whose chairman, John Elkann, is also vice-chairman of Juventus and the grandson of the club's late former owner, Gianni Agnelli.

  Last week Liverpool officials rejected claims by Hiddink's agent that they had made an approach for the Dutchman.

  lol you most happy liao =d

• Medicated Oil

  26 Jan 10, 22:41

  Ah Ben have already expired his bag of tricks if he have any.

  Time for a change of coach in Liverpool to spur the players on.

  The players need to play at their right position and get motivated to play well.

  Ah Ben is not a motivator.

  He is not a person that a player look on after they scored a goal.

  He is cold blooded.

• Poignant

  26 Jan 10, 22:59

  Originally posted by brokenluv:

  lol you most happy liao =d

  not at all.

  this news wont become real.

  rafael wont just leave like that, he wants to be like ferguson.

• zocoss

  27 Jan 10, 00:56

  Wah... Pool strike gold and Juve pick up rubbish... lol...

   

• CKeer

  27 Jan 10, 09:35

  Originally posted by zocoss:

  Wah... Pool strike gold and Juve pick up rubbish... lol...

  Poor Sissoko will be looking for a move again.

• dragg

  27 Jan 10, 09:55

  frankly, liverpool have never been this bad in their history.

   

• Poignant

  27 Jan 10, 14:02

  Originally posted by CKeer:

  Poor Sissoko will be looking for a move again.

  hahaha

• Poolman

  27 Jan 10, 14:20

  Rafa stays .

• Rooney9

  27 Jan 10, 14:50

  Originally posted by dragg:

  frankly, liverpool have never been this bad in their history.

   

  got under souness and evans before in the 90s.

• As romanista2001

  27 Jan 10, 19:52

  Originally posted by Rooney9:

  got under souness and evans before in the 90s.

  i always knew Souness would be a flop................Houllier was another disaster.............

• Poignant

  27 Jan 10, 22:37

  Juventus want Kuyt to follow Liverpool boss Benitez

  Juventus want not only Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez - but also Dutch attacker Dirk Kuyt.

  Tuttosport says Juventus were interested in signing Kuyt before he joined Liverpool in 2006 and there have been discussions over the player during transfer negotiations over Momo Sissoko and Xabi Alonso .

  Juve are pressing to convince Benitez to leave Liverpool and it's claimed the one player he will insist on bringing with him to Turin will be Kuyt.

  This season, Kuyt has scored eight goals in 29 appearances for Liverpool.

• As romanista2001

  28 Jan 10, 15:52

  Kuyt for Juve.................how low has Juve sunk..........back in the old days, the likes of Kuyt are not even good enough to be reserves.............

• Poignant

  28 Jan 10, 22:21

  Juventus put legal team together for Liverpool boss Benitez

  Juventus have put together a legal team to examine the prospect of prising Rafa Benitez away from his Liverpool contract.

  The Telegraph says Juventus have instructed their lawyers to examine Benítez's Liverpool contract as the Italian side attempt to put together a package to tempt him to Serve A in the summer.

  Juventus's power brokers met the club's lawyers on Tuesday to assess the likelihood of Benítez being convinced to end his six-year reign at Anfield in the summer. The club had considered attempting to lure Benítez to Italy this month but believed the Spaniard would not contemplate leaving Liverpool in the middle of the season.

  The Spaniard earns £4.8 million a year before tax under the terms of his Liverpool contract, agreed until 2014 after protracted negotiations just 10 months ago. It is a salary Juventus would not be able to match, though more relaxed tax laws would allow the Italian side to offer Benítez a net salary of £2.5 million a year.

  The prospect of Benítez demanding his substantial coaching staff accompany him to Italy presents a further obstacle, though Juventus have been informed the Spaniard would only wish to bring three or four key lieutenants with him.

  Juventus believe Benítez would be willing to appoint an Italian assistant manager, an important nod to the club's tradition and identified as a key negotiating point when Jose Mourinho joined Inter in 2008.

• Poignant

  28 Jan 10, 22:24

  Juventus president Blanc to meet with reps for Liverpool’s Benitez

  

  
  

  Juventus are set for talks with Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez's representatives today.

  La Stampa says Juve have settled on either Claudio Gentile or Alberto Zaccheroni as a firefighter to the end of the season before moving for Benitez in the summer.

  Zacc has moved ahead of Gentile in Juve's planning. Gentile held talks with directors yesterday, but they were unimpressed by his demands.

  Meanwhile, Juve president Jean-Claude Blanc will meet with Benitez's lawyers this morning. He hopes to convince Benitez about an immediate move to Turin, but is prepared to wait until the summer to land the Spaniard.

• Poignant

  28 Jan 10, 22:29

  Juventus Offer Rafa Benitez €3m Net Salary To Leave Liverpool - Report

  

  Rafael Benitez, Liverpool

  
  

  Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez remains a target for Juventus, who are prepared to offer the Spaniard a €3 million (£2.6m) annual salary in order to tempt him to Italy, according to a report from The Independent.
  
  Benitez reportedly earns £4.6m a year gross at Anfield, but Juve apparently feel that they can use the Italian tax system to their advantage and pay the tax on Benitez's proposed salary themselves.
  
  That would mean that the Spaniard's net earnings would be higher than they are at Liverpool.
  
  One potential stumbling block to any deal reportedly remains the high number of  coaching staff Benitez might want to take with him to Juve.
  
  However, the Serie A side are believed to have been assured that Benitez would only want to bring two of his sizeable Anfield staff with him in the shape of Mauricio Pellegrino and his goalkeeping coach Xavi Valero.
  
  He would also apparently accept an Italian assistant manager, a matter of principle to the club.
  
  Benitez's agent has not distanced his client from the speculation, which is viewed in some quarters as a means by which the Spaniard can reinforce his position at Anfield, where his future as Liverpool boss is likely to be reviewed in the summer.