Wales international midfielder Aaron Ramsey has endeared himself to his new fans at Juventus in the last few days by speaking Italian at his introductory press conference.
By all accounts his Italian was passable. However, by his own admission, he is still learning. The gesture will definitely be appreciated by the fans of the Bianconeri. He seems to be doing his utmost to be a success in Turin and has made a positive start to life in Italy.
Needs to stay injury-free
Aaron Ramsey has talent, there is no question about it. When he is in form, he can be such an effective box-to-box midfield player. He has put in some seriously impressive displays for both club and country when on form.
The Welshman also seems to have a pretty good temperament too. These two attributes are definitely a good start in a players quest to become a top performer. Unfortunately for Ramsey, injury problems have restricted his development in recent seasons. If he can stay injury-free and fit, then he has a very good chance of being a big success at the Italian club.
Juventus have been highly shrewd in the transfer market
Perennial Italian champions have a good recent record in the transfer market. The Bianconeri seem to have a knack of pulling off big signings for very little or no fee in recent years. The likes of Dani Alves and Paul Pogba have previously been wildly successful players after joining the club as free agents.
The Bianconeri have also pulled off the free signing of highly-rated French midfielder Adrien Rabiot without a fee. There are very few clubs in Europe who could have pulled off the deals that the Italian club has this summer.
Even the reported £67.8million paid to sign Ajax starlet centre-back Matthijs de Ligt could turn out to be a shrewd signing. The 19-year-old was one of the most in-demand players this summer. Juventus could easily double their money in a few years, as the Netherlands has a reported release clause of 150million euros.
The club from Turin has stayed on top in the Italian game for a long time, while also mounting realistic challenges in the Champions League in recent seasons, without doing pretty well to balance the books.
Dark horses to win the Champions League
This summer’s new additions have been relatively impressive and will certainly improve the Bianconeri’s squad. On paper, they have a very strong squad. No doubt they will win the Serie A title again, as there are simply no other teams capable of challenging them in the Italian top-flight.
However, their summer signings will make them dark horses to win the Champions League next season. They have regularly reached the latter stages of Europe’s elite competition. The signings of the likes of De Ligt, Ramsey and Rabiot will certainly not harm their chances of European success next season.
For a club the size of Juventus to have only won the European Cup on two occasions is criminal. Maybe this year will be when they can add that elusive third European Cup to their cluttered trophy room.
Will Aaron Ramsey be a good signing for Juventus?