Blog: The cost of rebuilding Juve

Antonio Labbate on Juventus’ decision to commit almost €40m on Alessandro Matri, Fabio Quagliarella, Simone Pepe and Marco Motta


Financially it will be like signing Jorge Martinez every summer for the next three years. That was the view of RAI journalist Carlo Nesti this afternoon when Juventus confirmed that they had agreed to exercise their right to buy Alessandro Matri, Fabio Quagliarella, Simone Pepe and Marco Motta for a massive €37.25m.

It looks a lot – even when you break it down into the three annual instalments of €12.4m – because it is a lot, but Juve director general Beppe Marotta shouldn’t be embarrassed. While his decision to hand over €12m to Catania last summer for the services of Martinez was premature, reckless and needless, the official has today guaranteed Juve two very good players, a decent squad member and a transfer pawn to use in this summer’s window.

There was little doubt that Quagliarella would remain. Even as he clutched his knee in agony just a minute into the first Serie A game of 2011, the striker was always going to be signed outright. You don’t pay a club €4.5m for a season long loan without already having the intention of keeping him come next summer.

His total cost of €15m is probably a little steep, but Napoli were in the driving seat at the negotiation table. Juve’s decision to sell Diego so late into the summer, in order to get the highest price possible, backfired when the Old Lady failed in last-minute bids to net Antonio Di Natale of Udinese and Milan’s Marco Borriello. With time running out, the Azzurri were in control of that deal.

Yet Quagliarella was Marotta’s biggest transfer success until his knee cracked against Parma. Used in his preferred second striker role by Gigi Del Neri, the Italian international netted nine goals in 17 Serie A appearances – an average of one net rippler every 145 minutes. Of course there are doubts over his fitness, but it was perhaps more risky letting go of Quaglia than keeping him.

Matri too was a rare glimmer of hope in a disastrous campaign for La Signora. The €15.5m to keep him also looks inflated, but think back to the winter window and Marotta should be applauded for his efforts rather than mocked. With no money to play with, he grabbed the up-and-coming forward who would go on to score nine goals in 16 League games. His 139-minute average is even better than Quagliarella’s.

Juve were queuing up for scraps at the time, desperate for a hitman to boost an attacking department which was ravaged by injury and poor form. Cagliari chief Massimo Cellino aimed high and Marotta had no option but to accept the buy-out fee agreed if he wanted the now Italian international in January. He had to do something and he did.

Keeping Pepe is also an understandable move. He’s not the reincarnation of Angelo Di Livio, that is clear, but wide players are a rare commodity in Serie A and they come at a premium. In a more successful Juventus side, the now former Udinese player is the kind of man who would have his purpose. Don’t forget that Arrigo Sacchi’s great Milan teams contained Alberigo Evani and Angelo Colombo.

The decision to keep Motta by handing over €3.75m is a questionable one when one considers his erratic performances. But with Juventus in talks with Lazio over Stephan Lichtsteiner, it would be no surprise if the Italian was moved on to another club this summer. His displays over the past season probably don’t warrant another chance in Turin but, even here, Marotta shouldn’t be crucified.

With hindsight, targeting Palermo’s Mattia Cassani would have been the smarter option, but Motta was a gamble which was worth taking. He fitted in with the kind of players the Champions League-deprived Turin giants were looking for – young Italians, on relatively low wages, with a significant margin of improvement. To the detriment of Marotta, the Motta gamble didn’t pay off.

In isolation today’s €40m commitment by a struggling Juventus may look dubious, but only once the summer transfer window closes and it can be aligned to the club’s other market moves should it be judged for its merits or deficiencies.

Can't wait to see Juventus compete at the top again.