Ranieri: «We aim for the best»

Ranieri: «We aim for the best»

First day of school, year two. Claudio Ranieri officially begins his second season on Juventus' bench. He's as enthusiastic as last year, and eager to get the best results again, as he did all along his first year here.

It's time to pick up where we left off, with most of last year’s men still here and a few important new signings. The 2008/09 team is almost complete, with still a couple of places to fill – as confirmed by Jean-Claude Blanc – and ready to delight the fans once more.

This is what the Manager had to say when he met the press at the Juventus Media Center in Vinovo today.

An eye to the past. «Last year we built the foundations, playing an excellent tournament. Now we'll try and improve».

I'm Ranieri, pleased to meet you. «One year ago we were starting from scratch. I know the lads now and they know me. This approach problem has been overcome, at least. We'll only need to try and bring the new guys up to speed».

The new signings. «Those that have already arrived, like those still to come, they’re all great guys, great players and they have the right fighting spirit».

At full ranks from mid-July. «In this first phase of pre-season training, some of the lads will still be on holiday. When they come back, I trust we'll have completed the squad by then, signing those players we're still looking for on the transfer market».

The next signing's identikit. «We're evaluating more than two midfielders. We will choose the one that gives us the best chances of further improving this team».

Starting off satisfied. «The important thing was improving our squad and we've done that. That's why I'm very pleased with how the Club has operated so far».

Lads coming back. «We chose to bring back De Ceglie, Marchisio and Giovinco because they did well on their debut Serie A season. That's the reason we feel they can strengthen our squad».

Giovinco, a star for the future. «I only have one squad, so I don't look at the players' age or how much money they make. Football is what you do day after day, on the pitch. Giovinco has talent; he can go past his man, can open up a defence and score. He needs to keep doing this while remaining level-headed and having fun with it too».

Aiming for the best. «Whoever joins Juve has to be ambitious. I was ambitious last year, even more so this year. We must try to aim for the top in every competition».

The first objectives: the preliminary round. «The Champions League matters a lot to us; that's why we must go through the preliminary round. We still don't know who we'll be facing; some opponents will be harder than others. The main thing is to train well so that we can reach the two games in good condition».

An eye on the League. «Serie A will be tough as usual. I expect AC Milan to be contenders. Fiorentina and the other teams that qualified for the UEFA Cup will also surely improve».

Help from the fans. «They gave us a big hand last year; they treated us very well the whole time. I expect they will give us a lot this year as well. When we operate on the transfer market, we take what they think into account too».

juventus.com