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THE GREAT ABSENT / the juventino will go to Manchester but has no rush to sign a new contract

Del Piero, the lawyer of the azzurri

April 2, 1999
Il Corriere della Sera

By Stefano Agresti

"There are too many inferior foreigners compared to the Italians and the national team is damaged"

TURIN - Five months after the accident that ended his season for Juventus and the national team, Alessandro Del Piero returns to the field. He runs ("but for a few minutes"), he can kick the ball ("but in this moment it isn't useful"), transmits with his single present an injection of optimism ("but it will take at least a month to establish the exact time of my recovery, because the reactions of the muscular and mechanical efforts will be estimated"). Nothing is actually resolved, at the point that the fantasista with the hurt knee has decided not to think about it anymore, not even considering the possibility on the bench on a possible Champions League final on May 26. "I exclude this soluction because my only objective is to reach a perfect start of the condition. The appointment is for the summer".

Between Del Piero's uncertainties about the moment to return to the fields, there's one that's worth millions: the renewal of the contract with La Juve. The negociations had started in the autumn, the accident from November 8 has unavoidable delayed it "because I had to think about other things", but they didn't find confirmation on the champion's words the indiscretion that the black and white atmosphere and that made to mantain the contract for more than 6 billions lira per season almost like a formality. On the other hand, Del Piero - connected with Juve until June 30, 2000, when he can go with no fee - controls the voices of an imminent agreement.

"I like that someone has for sure that are not the following of my relationship with the society. We are still talking about it. There's a common will to get to an agreement, but it takes a well made contract because it's important for Juve and for me, considering that it will determine how I will live from when I'm 24 to when I'm 29 years-old, in a fundamental time of my career and my existence. The issue isn't only economic, it takes time".

On the comparison between Pasqualin, Del Piero's manager, and Juve's managers, the problem are about the rights to use the image of the black and white champion, that has rich proposals to advertising, although he's injured. It's a very complicated issue. Meanwhile, someone puts in front of Del Piero the hypothesis that he should leave Juve: "+ a thing that has never come through my mind, but at a footballer's view, these are things that can happen every year. Before the Manchester transfer, in November, 1996, it seemed I was already from Newcastle, and a few days later, after the goal in Tokio, on the Intercontinental, I have been removed from the market". Del Piero's contract will represent a fundamental moment for the future strategies of Juve, still because right after his arrival in Piazza Crimea, Zidane's and Inzaghi's procurators presented themselves to ask for a big raise: to double the current 2 billion 200 million (each).

Del Piero is worried, specially about getting back to Juve. If he doesn't go to Manchester next week, if he doesn't encourage the bianconeri: "we've always scored against the English, I hope we succeed this time". He's less optimistic regarding the national squad, even if he finds a cause to the crisis of the azzurri's game on the massive presence of foreigners: "the great champions do nice at the big teams, but, on the last years, there are so many players from the other countries that are inferior to us Italians".
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