Champions League: Juventus drawn in Group A

If anyone had hoped for a soft start in this year’s Champions League, he will surely be disappointed as the bianconeri were drawn in Group A together with Bayern Munich, Bordeaux and Maccabi Haifa.

It is hard to judge the difficulty of a group but one thing is certain: Group A (the one of Juventus is definitely not an easy one). The bianconeri avoided the 4 English teams in the first pot and also FC Barcelona, but none the less the top seeds in their group are definitely not an easy team: Bayern Munich will be a tough bone to chew as will also be French champions Bordeaux and Israeli side Maccabi Haifa (the only team to already have taken part in the tournament from amongst the fourth seeds).

Juventus will play the first match of the group stage in mid-September. In the mean time below are the Groups as drawn tonight in Monaco:

Group A
Bayern Munich (Germany)
JUVENTUS
Girondins Bordeaux (France)
Maccabi Haifa (Israel)

Good news for Sissoko

Juventus today had a morning training session with the bianconeri taking part in a mini-match on the full field at high intensity. Zebina and Salihamidzic remained in the gym where Brazzo began a programme of functional athletic preparation with the possibility of him being available for the next championship match.

Ferrara fielded Martin Caceres as right fullback and the Uruguay national was a protagonist of a good performance even scoring a goal thanks to a powerful shot from outside the area ending in the corner of the net.

Felipe Melo and Diego worked separately with professor Gaudino. The former, due to a slight muscle strain to his left thigh while the latter due to a general muscle strain. Up to now both should be available for the match on Sunday afternoon.

Good news with regards to Momo Sissoko:

Following a consultation with Dott. Frenet and the instrumental tests (x-ray and scintograph) the healing of the inflammation is progressing well. In the next 15 days Momo will see the physiotherapy treatment being intensified just like the programme for the maintenance of the general muscular toning. After this Sissoko will get back to running and next will take part in specific training at the Juventus Center in Vinovo.

juventus.com

Giorgio Chiellini: Partnership With Fabio Cannavaro At Juventus Must Still Improve

Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini has explained how he is hoping to improve the partnership he has with Fabio Cannavaro and step it up to the same level he has enjoyed with Nicola Legrottaglie.

This is the first season in which Chiellini has played with Cannavaro, so the young defender is also hoping to learn a lot from the Italian national team’s captain.

"Now Legrottaglie and I play with eyes closed together as I'm used to playing with him," affirmed the former Fiorentina player to calcioblog.it.

"The understanding is very important for a central duo. Cannavaro had played so much with [Lilian] Thuram that he created an exceptional understanding, but we still need to improve.

"Playing together in the national team improves our automatism. Right now there's a lot of talk about Chiellini and Cannavaro, but I'm sure that Legrottaglie will play many games."

The 25-year-old defender has been at Juventus since 2005, and since then has played a total of f 107 league games and scored 10 goals for the club.

Goal.com

Juventus Sign Rafinha From Schalke 04

Juventus have signed Brazilian right back Rafinha from Schalke 04 for €8 million, according to Sportmediaset.

There is no official confirmation from either of the two clubs, but it is expected to arrive shortly.

Juventus have had a high profile summer in the transfer market, already signing Felipe Melo, Diego, Fabio Cannavaro, and Martin Caceres on loan, and had stated a couple of weeks ago that they would be bringing in no further players.

However, the full back positions looked far from secure in the latter part of pre-season, and now Juventus have moved to strengthen their right back area by purchasing Rafinha, a fast and attacking wingback who has been likened to Selecao legend Cafu.

Rafinha fell out with Schalke last summer after he insisted on competing in the Olympics. Without permission the Brazilian international travelled to China and incurred a €700,000 fine.

The full back has been linked with a host of top clubs this summer, including Milan, Barcelona and Chelsea, but it is Juventus it seems who have secured his signature.

Sportmediaset also claims that Rafinha will not be the last arrival in Turin before the end of the transfer window. Lyon’s Fabio Grosso will also be joining to fill the left back position, and this deal could be closed within a number of hours.

Goal.com