Rivalries can be a fickle thing in football. It’s somehow far more acceptable for footballers to wear the colours of more than one of the big Italian 3 – Juve, Inter or AC, than it would be for someone to cross the Merseyside divide in the UK.
Saying that, Antonio Conte’s move to Inter has caused quite a stir in Turin.
The former Premier League winner was not only an iconic midfield battler for the Old Lady in his hayday, he also returned them their dominant Serie A status – claiming the first three titles in their incredible streak of eight.
The Turin side owe Conte a lot, however, seeing their former captain lead out the black and blue of Inter is being seen as a slap in the face to his footballing roots.
Inter haven’t mounted a title charge in years, 2010 being the last time they held the trophy. A disastrous run of managers, Roberto Mancini, Frank de Boer and Stefano Piol included, led the club to appoint the highly sought Luciano Spalletti.
Whilst a Champions League place was achieved in back to back seasons, the former Roma coach’s spell was seemed all a tad underwhelming. Particular criticism was thrown the way of Spalletti in his handling a controversial captain Icardi – who is all set to leave the club, as well as his tell all style post match interviews.
Fact is, Whilst Spalletti has undeniable talent, history shows when Conte gets his teeth into a role, success usually follows – an intimidating thought for the Old Lady.
Upon taking the reigns at Juventus as an inexperienced young manager, stalwart Andrea Pirlo expressed his admiration (and fear) Conte had on his side.
‘When Conte speaks, his words assault you’, Pirlo said. Such sentiment has been shown by others also.
It’s not just the Inter heirarchy who have been shopping around for a new manager. An admirable exit of Allegri has led to the left field appointment of Chelsea man Mauricio Sarri.
Sarri’s incredible transformation of Napoli previous, turning the mid table stragglers into one of Europe’s most exciting attaching forces, clearly gained fans among Juve’s owners.
Whilst Juve’s band of more defensively minded football just won out on the two occasions they were pushed, its clear for Juventus to be a more commercially viable ‘brand’, a more attack minded philosophy.
One things for sure, whilst Juve have the best assembled squad in the league, Conte will thrive in creating a solid unit able to pick apart a Juve side in transition.
