Team Talk : Juventus in Malta

Juventus land in Malta


The roads leading to St Julian's were teeming with cars adorned with Juve scarves and flags last night as the Serie A giants headed to the Le Meridien St Julian's following their arrival at the Malta International Airport.

Renaissance Productions Limited, the organisers of Juve's five-day training camp in Malta, must have breathed a sigh of relief as the visiting team's much-awaited arrival passed without a hitch.

After the Air Malta plane from Turin touched down at around 9.30 p.m., the players and the rest of the 59-strong contingent boarded a coach and two other vehicles that were parked on the apron.

The Juventus players, coach Claudio Ranieri and club officials, had disembarked the aircraft amidst a flurry of camera flashes from the waiting photographers and television crews.

At the request of the MIA security office, the visiting party left the airport from the VIP zone, dashing the hopes of local Juventus fans who were looking forward to giving their heroes a rapturous reception in the arrivals lounge.

Nevertheless, this security measure didn't stop fans from milling around the roads around the airport in the hope of catching a glimpse of the Juventus players. Some even accompanied the team bus on a carcade.

An even bigger crowd of enthusiasts gathered in Balluta Bay to greet Juventus on their arrival at the Le Meridien, their base for the next five days.

The excitement for this training camp has been building steadily since news of Juventus's planned visit to Malta leaked in October.

Confirmation that Juventus were to play a friendly match against local Premier League side Valletta, at the National Stadium on Wednesday, increased the enthusiasm of the fans who were also delighted to learn that the Turin giants were bringing a full squad to Malta.

In a brief comment on Net TV Ranieri said: "I am surprised with the enthusiasm of the Maltese fans. But, we knew that we would get a great reception here as they told us there are over 20,000 Juventus fans on the island. So, we are naturally happy to be here.

"We came to Malta to work in preparation for the second part of the season."

The 25-player squad includes such big names as Alessandro Del Piero, Gianluigi Buffon, Mauro Camoranesi, Pavel Nedved, David Trezeguet and Vincenzo Iaquinta.

Director general Jean-Claude Blanc and president Giovanni Cobolli-Gigli will be here later on in the week.

Juve's training camp officially kicks off today with a practice session at the Ta' Qali training grounds. Tonight, the Juventus squad will make a guest appearance at a social activity at Sky Club, Paceville.

(Times of Malta)