01 November 2017
New decade. New set of players. Paolo Montero and Zinedine Zidane joined to bolster Juve’s defence and midfield respectively, while Filippo Inzaghi, Nicola Amoruso and – at the turn of the Millennium – David Trezeguet, introduced themselves to the attacking line-up.
The Old Lady claimed the 1997 and 1998 Scudetto titles, but agonisingly, European glory proved a bridge too far, as Marcello Lippi’s men reached three more Champions League finals (1997, 1998 and 2003), but were unable to bring back memories of that special night in Rome.
On 8 November 1998 in Udine, Alessandro Del Piero suffered a serious injury and, without their guiding light, Juventus were made to wait before they could return to domestic dominance.
The return of Lippi after a two-year absence proved to be the most suitable time to do just that.
If the summer signings of Gianluigi Buffon and Pavel Nedved already had Bianconeri fans purring, imagine the unbridled joy they felt at the end of that rollercoaster 2001/02 season.
In what evoked memories of Juve’s 1967 Scudetto title, Inter entered the final match on top of the table only to lose to Lazio, as Lippi & co. took full advantage with a last-day win away to Udinese. Needless to say, 5 May 2002 is a date that no fan will forget in a hurry.
The Scudetto shield would remain on Juve’s shirt for the following season, but glory soon gave way to tragedy when l’Avvocato Giovanni Agnelli, Vittorio Caissotti di Chiusano and il Dottore Umberto Agnelli all passed away between 24 January 2003 and 27 May 2004.
That summer, Fabio Capello took over the helm and oversaw a Juve side that were simply unstoppable in Italy, winning back-to-back Scudetto titles and setting domestic records in the process.
However, towards the end of the 2005/2006 season, a judicial enquiry sentenced the club to Serie B and a nine-point deduction carried over into the following campaign.
If ever there was a time that the Bianconeri needed to come out fighting stronger than before, this was it.
