Juventus F.C. Under-23
Following the reintroduction of reserve teams in Italy, Juventus U23 was formed in 2018 and was registered to Serie C, the third level of the Italian league system. In the first years, the team reached the promotion play-off stages of Serie C, without gaining promotion. In the 2019–20 season, under coach Fabio Pecchia, Juventus U23 won the Coppa Italia Serie C after defeating Ternana in the final. The club changed its name to Juventus Next Gen in 2022. Juventus Next Gen remained the sole Italian reserve team until August 2023 when Atalanta founded its own.
Due to the nature of the club as a reserve team, Juventus Next Gen needs to comply to certain regulations, such as being eligible for promotion to Serie A and competing in the Coppa Italia, the major national cup. The club, and in general FIGC's reserve-team project, has faced a lot of criticism, especially from fans of other Serie C teams due to their perceived lack of history.
History
Predecessors (1904–1976)
Reserve teams were introduced in Italy in the early 20th century, and played in the Seconda Categoria . On 17 April 1904, the second team of Juventus lost the final 4–0 to Genoa II at the Ponte Carrega field. On 2 April 1905, after a 3–0 away win to AC Milan II, Juventus II obtained the mathematical certainty of first place at the final three-team group stage to win their only Seconda Categoria trophy.
Juventus II also took part in the Campionato De Martino , another league dedicated to reserve teams, until the competition ceased in 1976; they won the 1959–60 edition.
Juventus even had a third team who played friendly matches against local teams, and competed in the Terza Categoria in the early 20th century.
Juventus U23 (2018–2022)
Juventus U23 were founded on 3 August 2018, following the reintroduction of professional reserve teams in Italian football after over 40 years, and was officially admitted to the Serie C championship.
On 21 August, Luca Zanimacchia became the first scorer of the team's history after scoring the only goal in a 1–0 win over Cuneo in the group stage of the Coppa Italia Serie C. Juventus U23's first game in Serie C was a 2–1 away defeat to Alessandria, with Claudio Zappa scoring the team's first league goal. Juventus U23 ended their first season in 12th place with 42 points in 37 games, and were eliminated in the group stage of the Coppa Italia Serie C.
In the 2019–20 season, coached by Fabio Pecchia, Juventus U23 won the Coppa Italia Serie C after beating Ternana 2–1 in the final on 27 June 2020. The club won its first trophy in their second year as a professional club. In August, U19 coach Lamberto Zauli was promoted to U23 level, replacing Andrea Pirlo (who became first-team coach), who had in turn taken Pecchia's place. Zauli coached for the following two seasons; in the last one, his Juventus U23 made their best-ever regular-season score with 54 points.
Juventus Next Gen (2022–present)
On 28 June 2022, Massimo Brambilla was appointed as Juventus U23's coach. On 26 August, the club changed its name to Juventus Next Gen. In his first season, Brambilla's Juventus Next Gen reached the final of the Coppa Italia Serie C, lost 5–3 on aggregate to Vicenza, but they failed to qualify for the promotion play-offs, having finished the league at the thirteenth place with 49 points. However, in the following season, they obtained the seventh place in the regular season, their best-ever-regular-season placement.
Stadium
Juventus Next Gen does not possess their own stadium. From 2018 to 2024, it shared the Stadio Giuseppe Moccagatta with Alessandria as their home stadium. Although there had been an agreement among the two parts shortly after Juventus's reserve team's foundation, Alessandria's fans protested to not share their stadium. According to the agreement, Juventus Next Gen fans can sit only in the guests sector. Their players train at the Juventus Training Center in Vinovo.
On 27 November 2022, Juventus Next Gen played exceptionally a match against Mantova at the Juventus Stadium, the first team home ground, in which tickets were free. The match was drawn 2–2, with Simone Iocolano scoring a brace for Juventus Next Gen and was seen by 28,572 fans present at the stadium. On 3 March 2023, the Juventus Stadium also hosted the first leg of the 2022–23 Coppa Italia Serie C final between Juventus Next Gen and Vicenza with an attendance of 21,572 spectators and with Juventus Next Gen losing 2–1.
Since 2024, Juventus Next Gen, alongside Juventus women's team, have been using the Stadio La Marmora-Pozzo in Biella.
Regulations
Juventus Next Gen play in the same professional league system as their senior team, rather than a separate league dedicated for youth teams. However, the reserve team may not play in the same division or higher as their senior team, nor in the Coppa Italia, making Juventus Next Gen ineligible for promotion to the Serie A. Should both Juventus and Juventus Next Gen qualify in the same league, the reserve team must play in the league immediately below. Juventus must pay an annual extraordinary fee of €1.2 million to have the reserve team registered to Serie C. In addition, Juventus may not take part to Lega Pro assemblies.
They may insert a maximum of 23 players in their team sheets. Only four players aged more than 23 when the season started may be inserted in the team sheets. Up to a maximum of seven players who had been registered to a FIGC-affiliated club for less than seven sporting seasons may be included in the match list.
In order to be eligible to play for Juventus Next Gen, players must have not been registered to the 25-man list of Serie A players and must have played at most 50 Serie A matches. Instead, to be eligible to play in promotion play-offs and in relegation play-outs, players must have not played over 25 first-team league matches of at least 30 minutes. If a player is suspended, he is unusable in both the first and reserve teams. Suspensions must be served in the team with whom he committed the infraction.
Reception
Juventus's reserve team and the second-team project itself led by FIGC have faced a lot of criticism. On 28 July 2018, before the team's official foundation, Sicula Leonzio president Giuseppe Leonardo criticised Juventus's choice to form their reserve team by saying: "Reserve teams are a flop, an experiment that does not lead to anywhere. Juventus B are going to be harmful and will distort the championship: they are not a newly promoted team but they are certainly going to be strong, we have seen this in women's football that the Bianconeri don't make a bad impression wherever they put their effort". In August 2018, Sportitalia director Michele Criscitellio criticised the second-team project by stating: "The mission of Juve[ntus] B was to get their youngsters to play and not to take away a place from the Serie C clubs to reach the Serie B. The buying power is so different that there would be no competition. It is pointless to make investments for whoever Juventus will end up in the group".
In December 2018, Pisa's fans attacked Juventus U23 by stating, in an official statement: "B teams are an insult to the dignity of those who consider the Lega Pro their own Serie A", further noting that Pisa should not act as a "sparring partner" for "youngsters without a stadium and history". The fans also defected the two league matches against Juventus U23 in the 2018–19 Serie C. In September 2019, Arezzo's fans flew a banner in front of their bus saying "No to B teams". They too defected the match against them as they had done in April.
In November 2021, Padova's fans considered Juventus U23 a "Super League franchise" and defected the two league matches against them. In July 2022, Lega Serie B president Mauro Balata expressed dissent towards reserve teams playing in Serie B, saying: "Our league embraces big and important cities. If another league wants to continue with this second-team project they can do so, but without affecting our rights and our history. It is not fair".
Players
Current squad
- As of 4 September 2024
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Youth sector
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Notable players
- As of 18 May 2024
This list includes players that have appeared in at least one first-team game.
- Giacomo Vrioni
- Enzo Barrenechea
- Matías Soulé
- Koni De Winter
- Joseph Nonge
- Daouda Peeters
- David Wesley
- Kaio Jorge
- Grigoris Kastanos
- Samuel Iling-Junior
- Stephy Mavididi
- Marley Aké
- Tommaso Barbieri
- Leonardo Cerri
- Marco Da Graca
- Alessandro Di Pardo
- Nicolò Fagioli
- Gianluca Frabotta
- Paolo Gozzi
- Fabio Miretti
- Simone Muratore
- Hans Nicolussi
- Marco Olivieri
- Manolo Portanova
- Nikola Sekulov
- Luca Zanimacchia
- Dean Huijsen
- Martin Palumbo
- Félix Correia
- Matheus Pereira
- Radu Drăgușin
- Hamza Rafia
- Kenan Yıldız
- Franco Israel
Coaching staff
Position | Staff |
---|---|
Head coach | Paolo Montero |
Assistant coach | Mirko Conte |
Athletic coaches | Stefano Cellio Daniele Palazzolo |
Goalkeeper coach | Daniele Borri |
Technical collaborator | Francesco Spanò |
Match analyst | Matteo Poletti |
Team manager | Marco Lombardo |
Last updated: 22 July 2022
Source: Juventus.com
Managerial history
Below is a list of Juventus Next Gen managers from 2018 until the present day.
Name | Nationality | Years |
---|---|---|
Mauro Zironelli | 2018–2019 | |
Fabio Pecchia | 2019–2020 | |
Andrea Pirlo | 2020 | |
Lamberto Zauli | 2020–2022 | |
Massimo Brambilla | 2022–2024 | |
Paolo Montero | 2024–present |
Season to season
Season | League | Coppa Italia Serie C | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tier | Division | Position | |||
2018–19 | 3 | Serie C | 12th of 20 | Group stage | |
2019–20 | 3 | Serie C | 10th of 20 | Champions | |
2020–21 | 3 | Serie C | 10th of 20 | Cancelled | |
2021–22 | 3 | Serie C | 8th of 20 | Round of 16 | |
2022–23 | 3 | Serie C | 13th of 20 | Runners-up | |
2023–24 | 3 | Serie C | 7th of 20 | Round of 16 | |
2024–25 | 3 | Serie C | TBD | First round | |
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Honours
See also
Notes
- ^ Not to be confused with the current Seconda Categoria, the eighth level of the Italian football league system
- ^ Not to be confused with the current Terza Categoria, the ninth level of the Italian football league system
- ^ Pirlo had been appointed to coach Juventus U23 on 30 July but was promoted as first-team manager on 8 August.
References
- ^ "Juventus Next Gen". Lega Pro (in Italian). Retrieved 31 August 2022.
- ^ Molinaro, John (20 January 2016). "Alessandria turning heads in Italy with Cup run". Sportsnet. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
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- ^ "Il campionato delle seconde squadre". La Stampa. 18 April 1904. p. 2.
- ^ "Un nuovo trionfo dei torinesi a Milano". La Stampa. 3 April 1905. p. 2.
- ^ "Quando dal Bacigalupo passava la "miglior gioventù" - IVG.it". Il Vostro Giornale (in Italian). 30 November 2015. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ^ ""Match" di "foot-ball" a Vercelli". La Stampa. 17 April 1905. p. 3.
- ^ "Gli ultimi grandi "matches" della stagione". La Stampa. 15 April 1905. p. 3.
- ^ "Le gare di foot-ball in Italia". La Stampa. 26 November 1905. p. 3.
- ^ "Il "match" di domani a Torino". La Stampa. 28 December 1912. p. 5.
- ^ "Juventus batte Carignano (5-1)". La Stampa. 10 January 1921. p. 4.
- ^ "La seconda squadra bianconera è realtà!" (in Italian). Juventus FC. 3 August 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
- ^ "Comunicato Ufficiale n. 40" (PDF) (in Italian). FIGC. 3 August 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 August 2018. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
- ^ Lamorte, Vito (21 August 2018). "Coppa Italia Serie C, Zanimacchia lancia la Juve B: Cuneo battuto 1–0". Fanpage.it (in Italian). Retrieved 22 July 2022.
- ^ "Juventus II vs. Alessandria". Soccerway. 16 September 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
- ^ "2018/2019 Serie C – Girone A". Soccerway. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
- ^ "Under23 ancora imbattuta ma non basta". Juventus FC. 27 August 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
- ^ "Ternana–Juventus U23 1–2: bianconeri nella storia, è trionfo in Coppa Italia!". Juventus News 24 (in Italian). 27 June 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ "Serie C, Coppa Italia: trionfa la Juventus Under 23, Ternana battuta 2–1" (in Italian). la Repubblica. 27 June 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ Sport, Sky (25 August 2020). "Juventus U23, ufficiale il nuovo allenatore". Sky Sport (in Italian). Retrieved 10 May 2023.
- ^ "Juve Under 23, ufficiale: Zauli lascia la panchina". Corriere dello Sport (in Italian). 13 June 2022. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
- ^ JuventusNews24, Redazione (28 June 2022). "Brambilla nuovo allenatore della Juventus U23: è UFFICIALE! Il comunicato del club". Juventus News 24 (in Italian). Retrieved 5 May 2023.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "From Under 23 to Next Gen – a new identity at Juventus". Juventus FC. 26 August 2022. Retrieved 26 August 2022.
- ^ "Il Vicenza vince la Coppa Italia di Lega Pro: 3-2 alla Juve Next Gen". La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). 11 April 2023. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
- ^ "Juventus Next Gen senza playoff, come proseguirà la stagione dei giovani bianconeri?". La Casa di C (in Italian). 29 April 2023. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
- ^ "Grazie di tutto, mister Brambilla!". Juventus FC (in Italian). Retrieved 26 June 2024.
- ^ "Juventus U23 ad Alessandria: i tifosi non vogliono condividere il "Moccagatta"". Goal. 5 August 2018. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
- ^ JuventusNews24, Redazione (15 November 2022). "Biglietti Juventus Next Gen Mantova: come assistere al match dello Stadium". Juventus News 24 (in Italian). Retrieved 21 November 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ JuventusNews24, Redazione (27 November 2022). "Doppietta Iocolano, tiro e deviazione: la Juventus Next Gen pareggia". Juventus News 24 (in Italian). Retrieved 27 November 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ JuventusNews24, Redazione (27 November 2022). "Spettatori Juventus Next Gen-Mantova: il dato ufficiale sul pubblico dello Stadium". Juventus News 24 (in Italian). Retrieved 27 November 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ JuventusNews24, Redazione (2 March 2023). "Spettatori Juventus Next Gen-Vicenza: in più di 20 mila allo Stadium". Juventus News 24 (in Italian). Retrieved 4 March 2023.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Baridon, Marco (2 March 2023). "Juventus Next Gen Vicenza 1-2: ai veneti il primo atto, Iling non basta". Juventus News 24 (in Italian). Retrieved 4 March 2023.
- ^ "Next Gen, il nuovo stadio è il "Pozzo-La Marmora" di Biella". Juventus FC (in Italian). 16 August 2024. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
- ^ Marrone, Claudia (21 July 2020). "Serie C, determinato il regolamento per l'iscrizione della Juventus U23 al torneo 2020–21". TUTTO Mercato Web (in Italian). Retrieved 29 September 2020.
- ^ Gravina & Brunelli 2020, p. 3.
- ^ Gravina & Brunelli 2020, p. 2.
- ^ Sacchi, Marco (15 November 2022). "Giocatori della Juve in campo con la Next Gen? Cosa dice il regolamento". Calcio e Finanza (in Italian). Retrieved 18 November 2022.
- ^ Parisi, Roberto (29 July 2018). "Serie C, il presidente della Sicula Leonzio: "La Juventus B falserà il campionato"". Stadionews24 (in Italian). Retrieved 21 November 2022.
- ^ "Bordata di Criscitiello contro la Juve: 'Così s'ammazza il calcio di provincia'". Il BiancoNero (in Italian). Retrieved 5 December 2022.
- ^ "Pisa - Juventus Under 23 senza la Curva Nord: "Non legittimiamo un'invenzione dei padroni del calcio"". PisaToday (in Italian). Retrieved 21 November 2022.
- ^ "La protesta contro le squadre B finisce sul pullman della Juventus U23". ArezzoNotizie (in Italian). Retrieved 21 November 2022.
- ^ Nazione, La. "La protesta del tifo amaranto: "Contro la Juve non entriamo" - Calcio - lanazione.it". La Nazione (in Italian). Retrieved 21 November 2022.
- ^ "Padova, gli ultras non "riconoscono" la Juve Under 23: diserteranno all'andata e al ritorno". Padova Sport (in Italian). 14 November 2021. Retrieved 21 November 2022.
- ^ "Balata: "No alla promozione delle seconde squadre in Serie B"". La Casa di C (in Italian). 27 July 2022. Retrieved 21 November 2022.
- ^ "Roster Juventus Next Gen". Juventus FC. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
- ^ "Juventus Next Gen". Global Sports Archive. Archived from the original on 26 August 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
- ^ "Juventus, dalla Next Gen alla prima squadra: Allegri ne ha lanciati 19". Sky Sport (in Italian). 18 May 2024. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
- ^ "Elenco allenatori". MyJuve. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
- ^ "Andrea Pirlo is the new Under 23 Coach!". Juventus FC. 30 July 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
- ^ Juventus.com. "Andrea Pirlo is the new coach of the First Team". Juventus FC. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ "Italian Cup Serie C". MyJuve. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ For the source, click "Archivio" first and then click the season in question at "Girone A | LEGA PRO" (in Italian). Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ "Coppa Italia Serie C, cancellata l'edizione della stagione 2020/2021". Goal. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ "Albo d'Oro". MyJuve. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ Baridon, Marco (11 April 2023). "Vicenza Juventus Next Gen 3-2: bianconeri sconfitti in finale, vincono i veneti!". Juventus News 24 (in Italian). Retrieved 29 May 2023.
Sources
Gravina, Gabriele; Brunelli, Marco (2020). "Comunicato Ufficiale N.24/A" (PDF). FIGC. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
External links
- Official website
- Juventus Next Gen at Soccerway