Ten-man Juventus secure 29th Serie A title

Turin, Italy: Since Antonio Conte took charge of Juventus in mid-2011, the club have experienced a remarkable rebirth, winning two Serie A titles in as many seasons after years in the doldrums and re-establishing themselves as the pre-eminent force in Italian football.

Juventus wrapped up their 29th championship on Sunday after a season which rarely looked anything other than a procession, with Napoli and Inter Milan taking turns to trail in their wake.

Arturo Vidal’s 10th league goal of the season was enough to secure a 1-0 win over Palermo and help ten-man Juventus to their 29th title.

Chilean international Vidal is Juve’s top scorer this season, the attacking midfielder scoring nine in the league and 14 in all competitions prior to Sunday’s encounter at Juventus Stadium.

When the hosts were awarded a penalty just before the hour after midfielder Massimo Donati jumped into the back of Bianconeri striker Mirko Vucinic in the area, Vidal stepped up to beat Stefano Sorrentino in the Palermo goal.

Juve’s title celebrations were tinged by the late sending-off of French midfielder Paul Pogba, who saw red seven minutes from the final whistle after spitting at Salvatore Aronica following a shouting match with the defender.

After securing back-to-back titles, Conte now wants to add European success to their domestic dominance and has made clear that he wants to see financial investment by the Turin club.

“If you have money, you buy players and you win,” Conte said. “There are superpowers like Real, Bayern, Barcelona and PSG who have a turnover of €400 million [Dh1.9b]. I think we need to change Italian football and, when I say we, I mean us — the other clubs, media, fans and institutions.

“Abroad they invest money in projects, here we talk about referees and what cars the players are driving.”

Lofty ambitions

According to a report in the Gazzetta Dello Sport, Conte wants an extension to his contract, which expires in 2015, and an increase in his reported salary of €3 million to five million.

He also wants the capability to buy the world’s best players and, even on the eve of sealing this season’s title, he dropped hints that he would consider leaving if they did not help him to achieve his ambitions.

“Conte the man definitely wants to stay at Juventus,” he said in Saturday’s pre-match conference. “However, there is also Antonio Conte the professional, who needs to sit down with the club. I’ve left big jobs before when I didn’t believe in the club’s plans.”