An old bond, a new jersey, a rivalry that continues in silence. Another game is being played between Juve and Napoli, made up of insights and snubs. And this time the blow could really hurt
Una Juve in salsa azzurra: un altro sgarbo di Giuntoli a De Laurentiis (Foto: LaPresse) – serieanews.com
It does not always take a crooked sentence or a controversial interview to make it clear that two people no longer value each other. Sometimes silence is enough. Or rather: a silence full of actions, studied moves, strategies that speak for themselves. Here, Cristiano Giuntoli and Aurelio De Laurentiis no longer say anything to each other, but answer each other from the only field that really matters for two managers of their caliber. The market.
The past, however, has left its aftermath. Giuntoli’s farewell to Napoli was anything but painless. Not so much for the manner, but for the destination: Juventus, the enemy par excellence. Since then, the Azzurri president has never missed an opportunity to make known how little he has digested the divorce.
Yet despite the tension in the air, Giuntoli has always avoided frontal controversy. He has chosen another kind of revenge: the elegant kind, which goes through files, not microphones.
What about Naples? Of course, it is not standing idly by. If De Laurentiis can wall off his still-contracted jewels-and Victor Osimhen is the most emblematic case-Giuntoli has a free field on another category: that of the players he discovered, enhanced, and who are now around Europe.
La Juve punta Kim Min Jae: Giuntoli, che schiaffo al Napoli
And so, while Napoli armors its aces, Juve is thinking about shuffling its cards at the back. The Bianconeri defense needs new air, an element that gives structure but also personality. Someone who already knows Serie A, who has won, who can handle pressure. And perhaps, who has been one of Giuntoli’s pupils.
La Juve punta Kim Min Jae: Giuntoli, che schiaffo al Napoli (LaPresse) – serieanews.com
One name is quietly circulating again, without fanfare, but with the force of things that make sense: Kim Min-jae. The South Korean central, who landed in Naples to replace Koulibaly and became an untouchable in a few months, is now playing for Bayern Munich, but with less brilliant results than expected.
At Napoli he had been a wall. At Bayern he is a good defender, but no longer indispensable. There is no crisis, for goodness sake, but neither is that feeling of being in the right place. And Giuntoli knows it. He chose him, pampered him, watched him grow. And now he could bring him back to Italy, to make him the mainstay of the new Juventus rearguard, perhaps alongside Bremer.
It would be a resounding comeback, and also a low blow to those who, until recently, considered him a football son. It would not just be a technical move. It would be a reverse caress on the face of Napoli. An uncomfortable memory materializing in the wrong jersey. Another scar, not opened by words, but by deeds. And by colors, too.
Come to think of it, it is perfect as revenge. Kim is no longer Napoli’s, there is no clause to negotiate, no presidents to convince. Bayern evaluates offers, Juve is watching. And De Laurentiis? He is silent. But the tension cuts all the same, even without anyone talking.
This article A Juve in blue sauce: another Giuntoli snub to De Laurentiis appeared in its original version first on SerieANews.
