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Juventus shouldn't give up on Diego

February 1, 2010 01:21 PM | Posted by   John Molinaro  

Where did it all go wrong for Diego?

Juventus paid a king's ransom, 24.5 million euros, to German outfit Werder Bremen last year for the mercurial Brazilian playmaker, hoping he would add another dimension to their attack and help them mount a serious challenge in Serie A and in Europe.

It hasn't quite worked out that way, though.

Not only were the Bianconeri bounced from the UEFA Champions League in the group stage, but they currently sit fifth in the Italian league standings, a whopping 15 points behind leaders Inter Milan.

After a strong start, including a brace of goals against AS Roma in a 3-1 win during the second week of the season, Diego has failed to live up to his top billing, scoring just three goals in 20 league appearances for Juve.

Little wonder, then, that Juventus fans are calling for the head of Alessio Secco, the team's director of football, who brought the Brazilian to Turin at a great expense.

The easiest and most expedient thing for Juventus to do in order to quell the storm would be to admit they got it horribly wrong and cut Diego loose by selling him to another club in the summer.

There's no denying Diego has woefully under-performed in Serie A, but it would be foolish and rash to let him go after one bad season.

Juventus need only look to the past – namely in the form of Michel Platini and Zinedine Zidane – for players who struggled in their debut seasons in Turin, only to go on to cement themselves as club legends.

Pavel Nedved was far from convincing during the first half of the 2001-02 Serie A season following a big-money transfer move from Lazio. Two years later, the Czech won the Ballon d'Or.

Juventus has shown great patience, but it has also acted in haste, most famously in the case of Thierry Henry.

Used primarily as a winger during his lone season in Italy, the Italians wasted little time in selling him to Arsenal in 1999. Henry would go on to become one of the most lethal and dangerous goal-scorers of his generation, leaving Juventus utterly embarrassed.

If that's not reason enough to give Diego more time, then Juventus' failure to find a tactical identity this season should be.

Fired as Juve coach last week, Ciro Ferrara employed Diego in a variety of formations, which means the Brazilian hasn't had the benefit of playing in settled starting 11 or a tactical system. Injuries to Vincenzo Iaquinta, Alessandro Del Piero and David Trezeguet have left Juventus with a serious problem up front - they've had to rely on the unreliable Amauri - leaving Diego without a proven striker to regularly link up with.

Compounding Diego's woes is that he has proven to be at his best when he can work off of a pair of wingers, the problem being that with the injured Mauro Camoranesi sitting on the sidelines, Juventus don't have any other wide men for the Brazilian to connect with effectively.

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