In a recent interview with `La Gazzetta dello Sport`, Gigi Delneri, who has managed several prominent clubs including Juventus, shed light on why his tenures at major teams were unsuccessful. He specifically pointed to resistance from club leadership, stating, “At Porto, Roma, and Juve, they did not accept the changes I wanted to implement.”
Recalling his brief spell in Portugal, Delneri recounted, “At Porto, President Pinto Da Costa dismissed me after only one month, at 3 in the morning, at the club headquarters. The team had just celebrated winning the Champions League under Mourinho, and Da Costa was displeased with my intention to promote young talents like Pepe.”
Regarding his time at Roma, he mentioned, “I took over midway through a challenging season that had commenced following Prandelli`s resignation.”
Speaking about his period at Juventus, Delneri observed, “We had an excellent performance in the first half of the season, but the second half was very poor due to injuries, most notably to Quagliarella, who was our main goalscorer. It`s frustrating to see my Juventus team used as a benchmark for poor performance. During my time in Turin, I did not benefit from significant financial investments. I came to understand one key principle: anyone joining Juventus must prioritize winning above all else; everything else follows.”