Black & White & Read All Over - Juventus complete the signing of Torino defender Angelo Ogbonna"Alla Juventus vincere non è importante. È l'unica cosa che conta."https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47437/blackwhiteread-fave.png2013-07-11T20:00:05+02:00http://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/rss/stream/42704932013-07-11T20:00:05+02:002013-07-11T20:00:05+02:00OFFICIALLY OFFICIAL: Juventus sign Angelo Ogbonna
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<figcaption>Valerio Pennicino</figcaption>
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<p>Weeks have gone by with papers saying that Angelo Ogbonna was ready to finalize his move to Juventus. It started out looking like it would get done in a matter days, now it's stretched to over a month's worth of negotiations.</p>
<p>It's been a long, rumor-filled process that has seen a deal come close to being done, close to being dead, then close to being wrapped up all over again. Now, it's finally signed, sealed, and delivered. Hey, what's a couple extra weeks when there's no actual games going, on, right? (Don't answer that.)</p>
<p>Ogbonna, Torino's highly-rated 25-year-old defender, completed his move across town to Juventus on Wednesday <a href="http://www.juventus.com/juve/en/news/ogbonna_medical" target="_blank">after completing his medical exams earlier in the day</a>, becoming the Old Lady's second signing of the summer after <a href="http://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/2013/6/26/4463992/officially-official-juventus-sign-carlos-tevez" target="_blank">Carlos Tevez's arrival was announced on June 26</a>. From <a href="http://www.juventus.com/juve/en/news/ogbonna_juventus_transfer" target="_blank">Juventus' official website</a>:</p>
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<p>Italian international defender Angelo Ogbonna has today completed a permanent move from Torino to Juventus.</p>
<p>The 25-year-old, whose impressive club performances earned him a place in Cesare Prandelli's European Championship squad last summer, has put pen to paper on a five-year contract which keeps him with the Bianconeri until 2018.</p>
<p>Juventus will part with €13 million for the player's full registration rights, to be paid in installments over the next three years.</p>
<p>The fee could rise by a further €2 million if Ogbonna achieves certain sporting targets stipulated in the agreement reached by the two clubs.</p>
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<p>Ogbonna, who has been a fairly regular presence on Cesare Prandelli's Italy roster for the past couple of years, wasn't a part of the Azzurri squad that took third place at the recently completed Confederations Cup. He appeared in 22 games for Torino in their first season back in Serie A, compiling a very impressive 92.7 percent on his passes — something Antonio Conte will clearly love — and averaging 1.9 tackles and 2.1 interceptions per contest.</p>
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<p>Angelo Ogbonna: Of every player to have made 10+ appearances, the defender had the highest pass success (92.7%) in Serie A last season</p>
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhoScored/statuses/355262139595882497">July 11, 2013</a>
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<p>It was widely regarded as a fairly poor season for somebody like Ogbonna — Gab Marcotti basically said it was god awful on a recent edition of ESPNFC PressPass — who has the talent level and potential that everybody says he has. But Ogbonna has been sought after by Beppe Marotta for quite awhile, even before the not-so-great season he completed a few months ago.</p>
<p>Still, the talent is there. Where he exactly he fits into the puzzle is still to be seen. But one would expect Ogbonna will slot in behind Giorgio Chiellini on the left side of Juve's three-man defense. His speed will certainly be an asset to a group that is far from the fleetest of foot.</p>
<p>Just think about this, though: Fernando Llorente (duh), Tevez, and now Ogbonna all signed and with the team before they go to Chatillon on Friday for preseason training. Not bad, not bad at all.</p>
https://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/2013/7/11/4481560/official-juventus-sign-angelo-ogbonna-serie-a-transfersDanny Penza2013-07-09T10:51:04+02:002013-07-09T10:51:04+02:00Juve reportedly close to an Angelo Ogbonna deal?
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<figcaption>Claudio Villa</figcaption>
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<p>Not like we've heard this before...</p> <p>It's seems as though we've been down this road before — maybe because we have. The Angelo Ogbonna-to-Juventus move has been close to being done, then off, then back on, then supposedly done, then back on again after a few meetings between Juve and city rivals Torino.</p>
<p>You get what I'm saying, though, right?</p>
<p>It's been a complicated kind of deal, one that has had a hang up because of money and the rights to the player — Ciro Immobile — going in Toro's direction. Some deals just end up being that way and trying to keep up is tough sometimes. I know I've been have trouble.</p>
<p>But as the calendar flipped over to Tuesday morning in Italy, word broke that there may be a final resolution to this deal that has drug on for a few more weeks than everybody thought it would. The two sides met on Monday to discuss a possible deal, with Juve and Torino reportedly reaching the long-awaited agreement for the highly-rated defender.</p>
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<p>Torino reports confirming Ogbonna to deal is almost done: <a href="http://t.co/BRQUjDTCIc">http://t.co/BRQUjDTCIc</a> €9m + €3m bonuses + Juve's half of Immobile.</p>
— Juventino (@juventus_fc_fan) <a href="https://twitter.com/juventus_fc_fan/statuses/354497528454057985">July 9, 2013</a>
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<p>Or is there...? From <a target="_blank" href="http://www.football-italia.net/36225/ogbonnas-juve-move-hits-snag">Football Italia</a>:</p>
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<p>The Torino defender looked set to join the Bianconeri last week, with reports claiming that transfer was all-but through.</p>
<p>However, Tuttosport have insisted this morning that a meeting between Juve's sporting director Beppe Marotta and Il Toro's President Urbano Cairo ended in stalemate.</p>
<p>The Old Lady are offering €10m plus 50 per cent of Ciro Immobile, or €13m cash for the 25-year-old.</p>
<p>Torino though, are looking for €18m.</p>
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<p>This is confusing.</p>
<p>Some media outlets in Italy the deal is just about done, some say it's hit yet another snag. It's almost like the want to keep us deliberately glued to our respective computer screens until something actually happens. I don't know. That might just be a guess on my part. But the way this whole thing has gone the past couple of weeks and with Marotta digging his feet in on a price for Ogbonna, it's no surprise it's been stretched out this long.</p>
<p>But the genuine consensus is pointing towards a deal getting done soon. Then again, we've heard that before, too.</p>
https://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/2013/7/9/4505490/juventus-torino-angelo-ogbonna-serie-a-transfer-rumorsDanny Penza2013-07-02T17:25:15+02:002013-07-02T17:25:15+02:00Juventus confirm negotiations for Angelo Ogbonna
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<figcaption>Claudio Villa</figcaption>
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<p>It wasn't all about Fernando Llorente at Fernando Llorente's introductory press conference. As hard as that is to believe, the press on hand didn't shy away from asking Juventus director general Beppe Marotta about some of the other transfer targets that are still on the table.</p>
<p>There was, of course, <a href="https://twitter.com/agiamba/status/352073698150326273" target="_blank">a nice little jab at Fiorentina</a> when it comes to a possible deal for striker Stevan Jovetic, a player who has been linked to Juve continuously over the past year-plus. But there was also confirmation of what was somewhat assumed already: Juventus are trying to sign Torino defender Angelo Ogbonna.</p>
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<p>Marotta: Ogbonna is a <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Juventus&src=hash">#Juventus</a> target, we're trying to bring him in. We'll see how it goes</p>
— JuventusFC (@juventusfc) <a href="https://twitter.com/juventusfc/statuses/352074337236418560">July 2, 2013</a>
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<p>Other than Jovetic and Carlos Tevez, Ogbonna is probably the name most continuously linked with a move to Juventus this summer. Reports out of Italy had him making his deal to move across town official this week, but Marotta was fairly coy on what it will take for a deal to actually get finished. That's somewhat expected for the simple reason of not tipping his hand, but he did seem rather confident that something will get done sonner or later.</p>
<p>The rumored price for Ogbonna has varied depending on the source. Some media outlets say it is as high as €12 million, others say it's around €6 million or €8 million. The one thing they can all agree on is that there will be a player — most likely co-owned striker Ciro Immobile, who spent last season with Genoa — going to Torino in the deal. The details to what extent is obviously still being worked out, but that's just part of negotiating, I guess.</p>
https://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/2013/7/2/4486498/beppe-marotta-confirms-juventus-are-in-negotiations-for-angelo-ogbonnaDanny Penza2013-06-29T17:00:06+02:002013-06-29T17:00:06+02:00Understanding the logic behind a move for Ogbonna
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<figcaption>Marco Luzzani</figcaption>
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<p>We now interrupt you from your regularly scheduled talk of how much Stevan Jovetic is really worth to bring you this important message...</p> <p>Top striker sgined? Check.</p>
<p>Juventus supporters finally off Beppe Marotta's back? Check.</p>
<p>Finding a budget-friendly acquisition at the same time? Check.</p>
<p>Time to fill other "needs"? You better believe it.</p>
<p>It's safe to say that Marotta and his right-hand man, Fabio Paratici, are having a good week. It's probably going to be described as better than simply "good," but we'll just stick with that for the time being. Bringing in Carlos Tevez, a player Juve has had their eye own for a couple of years now, was the ultimate coup that Marotta had been lacking since he took over as director general.</p>
<p>And, if the Italian press can be trusted (lolwut), there's more news on its way in just a matter of days, this time with Angelo Ogbonna Juve's next possible transfer sweep.</p>
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<p>Gazzetta: Ogbonna to Juventus will be official on Monday.</p>
— Hashim ³¹ (@Hashim0307) <a href="https://twitter.com/Hashim0307/statuses/350861348437110784">June 29, 2013</a>
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<p>So there's that. Is it basically something like this: One transfer target captured, and the rest of the dominos will begin to fall? Hey, it makes sense. I didn't expect it to be done so quickly after Tevez was signed, but if the GdS think so — and <a href="http://www.football-italia.net/35833/ogbonna-juventus-monday" target="_blank">so did La Stampa</a>, who had the initial report on Friday — then Juventus could very well be wrapping up another one of their rumored deals before preseason training starts in two weeks on July 12.</p>
<p>For weeks, Juventus have been linked to Ogbonna — Torino's 25-year-old Italian international central defender — somebody who has been a rumored target of the Italian champions for the better part of the last few years. There have been reports he had agreed to terms, was going to sign, then not sign, then cost more than first thought, then Juve and Torino agreed to a fee, and so on. You probably get the gist of it by now.</p>
<p>Who is he? What does he bring to the table? Well, <a href="http://espnfc.com/blog/_/name/juventus/id/849?cc=5901" target="_blank">Mina Rzouki told us just a few days ago</a>.</p>
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<p>The opportunity of being coached by the likes of Giampiero Ventura has helped the player to develop his tactical positioning as well as his movements on the ball. Relying more on his technique as opposed to his physical strength, Ogbonna has learned to slowly shed the flaws that hindered his play. Composed, fast and blessed with good vision, the defender continues to improve each year and has been likened to Juve's defensive stalwart Giorgio Chiellini. Although barring their powerful style of play, there are many differences between the two.</p>
<p>With Juventus desperately missing pace at the back and considering the impact Chiellini's absence had on the team during his injury, investing in Ogbonna, regardless of the heavy price tag, is a welcome idea.</p>
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<p>It could very well be.</p>
<p>The price for Ogbonna has been rumored to be anywhere from €8 million to €12 million with some sort of co-ownership exchange of a young player, probably striker Ciro Immobile, thrown in to keep the price within reason (for some, of course). That's not exactly cheap when you consider Ogbonna won't be dethroning the Andrea Barzagli-Leonardo Bonucci-Giorgio Chiellini three-man defense next season, but it's something that will add another quality defender to the squad.</p>
<p>Obviously, in theory, adding somebody like Ogbonna would make getting playing time for the likes of Martin Caceres and/or Luca Marrone (if he's still viewed as a defender next season) a little tougher. But, you would think, it will also provide Antonio Conte with even more tactical flexibility as the talk of a switch to a 4-3-3 doesn't go away. Ogbonna would be a natural fill-in for Chiellini, somebody who obviously is one of his classic bone-crushing tackle away from another long-term injury stint.</p>
<p>Is he going to cost a little more than he should? Probably, it's tough to find bargains when you're dealing with a player in his mid-20s that is highly-rated and a rumored target of big clubs in Italy and throughout Europe. That's just the price of doing business with Torino when it comes to Ogbonna, city rival or non-city rival.</p>
<p>Either way, Marotta's good week could tack on a few more days. I'm sure he wouldn't mind.</p>
https://www.blackwhitereadallover.com/2013/6/29/4476838/angelo-ogbonna-juventus-torino-serie-a-transfer-rumorsDanny Penza