Juventus All-Time Greatest Team for Italian Players

This blogger Artur Yanturin of Russia copied many of my blog teams.  This blog was one of them.  It was my Russia All-Time Team here.  His team was written in 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2014.   His Spartak Moscow All-Time team entry of was published in October 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2017.  His entry of the Dutch-German rivalry between Real Madrid and Barcelona was written in 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2014.  He also copied many many of my blog entries.

His Facebook and Instagram

Dino Zoff and Claudio Gentile

Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index.

Italy All-Time Team
Juventus All-Time Team
Juventus All-Time Team for Foreign Players

This is my selection of a 25 member all-time team for Juventus' Italian players.  The number 25 was chosen because it is the official squad size for the Champions' League.

Juventus has won more Serie A titles than any other Italian clubs, but they are known as the unlucky team at the European Cup/Champions League.  They won two European Cup/Champions' league titles.  They also have the misfortune of losing in the Final 6 times.  And their very first title came in 1985, a team consisted of Michel Platini and the backbone of the 1982 Italian World Cup winning team.  A decade later, they won their second title in 1996.

Roberto Baggio and Gianluca Vialli 

Team 
GK: Gianluigi Buffon 

Gianluigi Buffon is considered to be one of the greatest keeper ever.  He made his Serie A debut at the age of 17 in 1995 with Parma.  He earned his first cap when he was only 19.  He had a total of 175 caps. His biggest achievement must be winning the World Cup in 2006.  He has been named the Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year a record eight time. He became the most expensive goalkeeper of all time following his transfer from Parma to Juventus in 2001.  He moved to PSG in 2019.

GK: Dino Zoff 

Dino Zoff captained the World Cup winning side in 1982 at the age of 40.  He held the Serie A appearance record until 2006. He was also a part of the team that won the European Championship in 1968. He achieved great club success with Juventus, winning 6 Serie A titles, 2 Coppa Italias, and an UEFA Cup, also reaching two European Champions' Cup finals in 1972-73 and 1982-83 seasons. He also played for Udinese, Mantova and Napoli.

GK: Giampiero Combi 
Combi won the 1934 WC with Italy.  He was considered one of the best in the world during his time.  He spent his entire career with Juventus.  He played 351 games in Serie A, winning five titles – in 1926 (having conceded only 18 goals during the season), 1931, 1932, 1933 and 1934 as part of the first golden age of the club with a record of five championship victories in a row, a feat known as Il Quinquennio d'Oro (The Golden Quinquennium).

Giampiero Combi 

CB/RB: Virginio Rosetta 

Virginio Rosetta was a star defender before the Second World War. He was on the 1934 World Cup winning team, but only played one match where he was the captain.  That was also his last international match.  At the club level, he won five consecutive scudetti during the 1930s with Juventus. Only three other Juventus players won more titles than him.  He started with FC Pro Vercelli 1892 where he won two Serie A titles.

CB/RB: Claudio Gentile 
Gentile was considered one of the Azzurri's greatest defender.  He went to both 1978 and 1982 World Cup Finals.  He was best remembered for stopping Diego Maradona and Zico at the World Cup Finals in 1982 as Italy won their third World Cup.  He also went to 1978 and 1982 World Cup Finals. His playing style was very hard. He was capped 71 times.  Gentile played over a decade with Juventus between 1973 and 1984. He also played for Fiorentina and other clubs.

SW: Gaetano Scirea  
Scirea was the starting libero for Italy's World Cup winning team in Spain 1982 and Juventus throughout the 1980's.  He is considered one of the greatest defenders ever played the game.  He is one of only five players in history to have won all international trophies for football clubs recognized by UEFA and FIFA.  He had 78 caps for Italy between 1975 and 1986. He also played in 1978 and 1986 World Cup Finals as well as the European Championship of 1980. He also played for Atalanta.

Gaetano Scirea

SW: Ciro Ferrara 
Ciro Ferrara was considered one of the best defenders in the world during his prime.  However, his career with the Azzurri was limited by the same period with some of the greatest defenders in history. For club football, he played nearly a decade for Napoli during Diego Maradona's years before moving to Juvnetus, where he played between 1994 and 2005.  At Juventus, he won 6 scudettis and a single Champions' League.

CB/LB: Giorgio Chiellini
Giorgio Chiellini played with Livorno, Roma and Fiorentina before moving to Juventus in 2005. With Juventus, he has won eight consecutive Serie A titles from 2012 to 2019. For the national team, ge earned over 90 caps. He was selected for the 2004 Olympics, winning a bronze medal, as well as for three European Championships, two World Cups and two Confederations Cups, helping them to reach the final of Euro 2012.  He captained Italy's Euro 2020 winning team.

Giorgio Chiellini 

CB/LB: Pietro Rava 

Pietro Rava was a member of the Italian national team that won the World Cup in 1938.  He was selected to the All-tournament team.  He also won the Olympic Gold Medal in 1936.  In total, he played 30 times for Italy. At the club level, he played for U.S. Alessandria (1928–35, 1946–47), Juventus F.C. (1935–46 and 1947–50) and Novara Calcio (1950–51).  Along with Alfredo Foni, Sergio Bertoni, and Ugo Locatelli, Rava is one of only four Italian players ever to win both the Olympic tournament and the World Cup.

LB: Antonio Cabrini 
Antonio Cabrini was one of the best leftbacks in the world during his time.  He was remembered for being a part of the great defensive unit that helped Italy to win the 1982 World Cup in Spain.  He spent the best part of his career with Juventus, winning the European Cup in 1985. He started his career with  U.S. Cremonese. He also played for Atalanta and Bologna. He picked up 73 caps, and went to the 1978, 1982 and 1986 World Cup Finals.

RB/LB: Gianluca Zambrotta  
Gianluca Zambrotta was one of the best fullbacks in his prime.  He could play both rightback and leftback. He earned 98 caps or Italy   He was a member of the 2006 World Cup winning team.  He was selected to the Team of the Tournament. He also played in 2002 and 2010 World Cup Finals.  He played mainly with Juventus. He also played with Como, Barcelona, AC Milan and Bari.

DM: Giuseppe Furino
Furino was a youth product of Juventus, but he played for Savona Calcio and U.S. Città di Palermo. He made his Serie A debut for Palermo in 1968, and he then transferred to Juventus after a single season. From 1969 tom1984, he won 8 league titles with Juventus, a record he shares with Giovanni Ferrari, Gianluigi Buffon and Virginio Rosetta. From 1970 to 1974, he played three times for Italy, including a match in the 1970 World Cup Finals. 

CM/DM: Antonio Conte
From 1985 to 1991, Antonio Conte played for Lecce.  From 1991 to 2004, he played for Juventus.  He is one of Juventus' most decorated players.  He captained the team and won the 1996 Champions League, as well as five Serie A titles, among other honours.  He also reached the Final three more times, but only came second. From 1994 to 2000, he was capped 20 times for Italy.  he scored a bicycle against Turkey at the Euro 2000.  He also participated at the World Cup in 1994.

Antonio Conte

DM/CM: Marco Tardelli 
Marco Tardelli played at the 1978 World Cup Finals in Argentina and the 1980 European Football Championship at home.  He was the unsung hero of Italy's 1982 World Cup winning team.  He was remembered for his goal celebration in the World Cup Final against Germany. He was capped 81 times.  He also won all the three major European competitions with Juventus. He also played for Pisa, Como, Inter Milan and St.Gallen of Switzerland.

CM/UTP: Claudio Marchisio 
A product of the Juventus youth system, he spent a large portion of his career at his hometown club, with the exception of a season-long loan spell at Empoli, winning seven consecutive Serie A titles between 2012 and 2018, and four consecutive Coppa Italia titles between 2015 and 2018.  For Italy, he played 55 times between 2009 and 2017.  He attended the 2010 and 2014 World Cups; he also took part at Euro 2012, winning a runners-up medal.

CM:  Andrea Pirlo
Andrea Pirlo started as an attack midfielder with Inter Milan without success before becoming a regista.  He redefined the regista role in the modern game.  He had 116 caps between 2002 and 2015.  He won the World Cup in 2006 and took Italy to the Final of Euro 2012.  For his club career, he was known for his career with AC Milan.  He played over 280 matches for them, winning two Champions' League titles.  He switched to Juventus late in his career, where he won the Serie A Player of the Season three times.

Andrea Pirlo

DM/CM: Fabian Capello

As a player, Capello represented SPAL, Roma, Milan and Juventus. He played as a midfielder and won several trophies during his career which lasted over 15 years. He won the Coppa Italia with Roma in 1969, though he was most successful with Juventus, winning three Serie A titles in 1972, 1973 and 1975. With Milan, he won the Coppa Italia again in 1977 and also won another Serie A in 1979. Capello also played internationally for Italy during his career, amassing 32 caps and scoring 8 goals.

AM/CM: Giovanni Ferrari 

Giovanni Ferrari was a key player as Italy won back-to-back World Cups in 1934 and 1938. Along with Giuseppe Meazza and Eraldo Monzeglio, he is one of only three Italian players to have won two World Cups.  He earned 44 caps. He was also a part of the great Juventus of the early 1930's.  He won the Serie A a record 8 times, winning 5 titles with Juventus, two with Inter Milan and one with Bologna.

AM/FW: Roberto Baggio 
Baggio was the World Player of the Year, the Ballon d'Or winner and the World Soccer Player of the Year in 1993.  He led Italy to reach the semifinal at Italia 1990 and then, to a second place four years later.  For club football, he started his career with Fiorentina.  He became the most expensive player in the world when he joined Juventus, right before the World Cup Finals in 1990.  He also played for AC Milan, Bologna, Inter Milan and Brescia.

AM: Alessandro Del Piero 
Alessandro Del Piero is considered to be one of Juventus' greatest players. He played with them for 19 years (11 years as captain), and holds the club records for most goals (289) and appearances (705). For Italy, he played 91 times between 1995 and 2008, despite the fact that Italy had many players fighting for his position.  He was on the 2006 World Cup winning team. He also went to the World Cup Finals of 1998 and 2002, and the European Championship of 1996, 2000 and 2004.

Alessandro Del Piero 

RW/LW:  Franco Causio 
Franco Causio capped 63 times between 1972 and 1983.  He was a part of the Azzurri at Euro 1980 and then, the World Cup in 1982.  He played 11 years for Juventus between 1970 and 1981.   During a highly successful period with the club, he won the scudetto six times, as well as winning a Coppa Italia, and an UEFA Cup. He also reached the European Cup final with Juventus during the 1972–73 season.

RW/ST: Giampiero Boniperti 
Giampiero Boniperti played his entire career with Juventus where he played from 1946 to 1961.  He was known for playing alongside John Charles and Omar Sivori. He was the highest goalscorer in Juventus' history for more than 40 years, until his record was broken by Alessandro Del Piero. He went to the World Cup Finals in 1950 and 1954.  For Italy, he was capped 38 times and served as captain 24 times.  He went to the 1950 and 1954 World Cup Finals.

FW: Gianluca Vialli 

Gianluca Vialli  first made his name with Sampdoria, helping them to win the Cup Winners' Cup in 1990.  In 1992, he made a world record breaking transfer to Juventus.  In 1996, he helped Juventus to win their first ever Champions' League.  He latyer played for Chelsea.  He went to Euro 1988, where he was named in the team of tournament.  However, at the 1990 World Cup Finals, he lost his starting spot. After the World Cup Finals, he forced him out of the national team. 

ST: Felice Borel
Felice Borel was born in Nice, France. During his career, he played for Juventus and cross-city rivals Torino in Serie A and, in Serie B, for Alessandria, and finally for S.S.C. Napoli. He scored 157 goals for Juventus, winning three Serie A titles. He is currently Juventus's sixth highest goal score.  At the international level, he was capped 3 times for Italy, but he was a part of the 1934 World Cup winning team appearing once in the tournament.

ST:FW: Roberto Bettega 
Nicknamed "White Feather", Roberto Bettega spent most of his career with Juventus. He is their 3rd All-Time leading scorer.  He won 7 Serie A titles there.  He was Serie A top scorer in the 1978-1979 season. From 1975 to 1983, he played 42 times for Italy scoring 19 goals. He went to the 1978 World Cup Finals in Argentina, where he was voted into the Team of the tournament.  He missed the following World Cup Finals held in Spain because of an injury, where Italy won their third title. 

Roberto Bettega 

Honorable Mention

Angelo Peruzzi, Stefano Tacconi, Lucidio SentimentiFrancesco Morini, Antonello Cuccureddu and Ernesto Castano, Carlo Parola, Alfredo Foni, Sergio Brio, Fabio Cannavaro, Gianluca Pessotto, Moreno Torricelli, Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci, Carlo Parola, Umberto Caligaris, Angelo Di Livio, Luigi Bertolini, Federico Munerati, Mauro Camoranesi, Romeo Benetti, Alessio Tacchinardi, Carlo Bigatto, Giampaolo Menichelli, Gino Stacchini, Claudio Marchisio, Fabrizio Ravanelli, Filippo Inzaghi, Paulo Rossi, Guglielmo Gabetto, Pietro Anastasi. 

Squad Explanation
-- The original team was created in 2019.  I redid the team in April, 2024.

-- I have 15 Italian players on my Juventus All-Time team.  They were Gianluigi Buffon, Dino Zoff, Giampiero Combi, Gaetano Scirea, Ciro Ferrara, Giorgio Chiellini, Claudio Gentile, Antonio Cabrini, Gianluca Zambrotta, Andrea Pirlo, Marco Tardelli, Roberto Bettega, Giampiero Boniperti, Alessandro Del Piero and Roberto Baggio. So I have 10 players on this team who did not make that all-time team.  

-- Raimundo Orsi, Luis Monti and Omar Sivori were considered to be Argentine for this blog. They played for Argentina before becoming Italian citizens.  Mauro Camoranesi never played for Argentina.  In the modern world, he was cap-tied to Italy. So he was considered as an Italian, but he made honourable mention.  I also selected Felice Borel who was born in France.  Massimo Bonini was also considered to be a foreign player because he was born in San Marino and represented them in football.

-- Nazio-Juve was a group of Juventus' players who formed the backbone of Italy's World Cup winning team in 1934.  Giampiero Combi, Virginio Rosetta, Giovanni Ferrari and Felice Borel II made this team. Umberto Caligaris is on my honorable mention.

-- Blocco-Juve (Juve Block), also known as Blocco Juventus was the nickname of the group of Juventus players who were the backbone Italy's World Cup winning team in 1982.  Under Giovanni Trapattoni, this group also helped Juventus to  dominate the Italian football.  I selected the following players from this group: Dino Zoff, Claudio Gentile, Gaetano Scirea, Antonio Cabrini, Marco Tardelli and Roberto Bettega.

-- In 1996, Juventus emerged victorious in the UEFA Champions League, triumphing over Ajax.  Ciro Ferrara, Antonio Conte, Gianluca Vialli, and Alessandro Del Piero made this team.

-- Between 2011 and 2020, Juventus achieved an impressive feat by securing nine consecutive scudetti. Additionally, they reached the Champions League Final on two occasions. Despite their achievements, they were underrepresented on this team.   Only Claudio Marchisio, Andrea Pirlo, Gianluigi Buffon, and Giorgio Chiellini made this team.

Goalkeepers

-- Gianluigi Buffon and Dino Zoff were obvious choices for the first two goalkeepers.  Buffon is widely acknowledged as the finest goalkeeper in the history of the sport, not just for Juventus. Zoff is held in high regard and comes close in terms of his historical importance.

Gianluigi Buffon

-- Stefano Tacconi stepped in as Zoff's successor and guarded the Juventus goalposts from 1983 to 1992. During this remarkable nine-year tenure, he led the team to triumph in every international competition they participated in. Another talented Italian goalkeeper who played for Juventus was Angelo Peruzzi. He notably contributed to the team's victory in the 1995/96 Champions League season against Ajax.

-- But I took Giampiero Combi as my third goalkeeper.  He is widely regarded as one of Italy's greatest goalkeepers in history. He achieved great success by winning the 1934 FIFA World Cup with the Italian national team. Combi played a crucial role during Juventus' first golden era, securing an impressive streak of five consecutive championship victories, famously known as "Il Quinquennio d'Oro" or "The Golden Quinquennium."

Defenders

-- Lillian Thuram is the only non-Italian on my Juventus All-Time team. Basically, I only needed to replace him.  Gaetano Scirea, Ciro Ferrara, Giorgio Chiellini, Claudio Gentile, Antonio Cabrini and Gianluca Zambrotta went straight into this team. 

-- Gaetano Scirea is considered one of the greatest defenders ever played the game.  Ciro Ferrara spent 11 seasons with this club.  Both were undisputed selection for this team.  

Ciro Ferrara 

-- Giorgio Chiellini has a special place in the hearts of Juventus fans.  He played over 500 games for the club. He was known for his solid backline playing alongside Leonardo Bonucci and Andrea Barzaghi, collectively known as BBC.  For Juventus, they were a rock solid until.  Ironically, they lost a Champions' League final against the "BBC" of Real Madrid. Chiellini and Bonucci also won an European Championship for Italy.   

-- Rava edged out Brio, Salvadore, Barzagli and Cannavaro for the last spot. He was a legend at his time. His era was also underrepresented. He was a left-side central defender.

-- Fabio Cannavaro won the Ballon d'or, but he won it through his performance at the 2006 World Cup Finals.  Giorgio Chiellini has served the Old Lady much longer. I awarded him with a spot over Cannavaro for the last defender spot.  Both Sandro Salvadore and Carlo Parola were iconic symbol of the club at their time, but spaces are tight in this position.  I also studied Sergio Brio, Alfredo Foni, Francesco Morini, Antonello Cuccureddu and Ernesto Castano.

-- Claudio Gentile also played central defenders, but he was best remembered for playing as right fullbacks in Juventus.  Angelo Di Livio and Virginio Rosetta made on honorable mentions for my Juventus All-Time team, so they were the two prime canadidates to take over from Thuram.  I decided to take Rosetta.

-- Antonio Cabrini is an unequivocal selection for the leftback position due to his integral role in the renowned "Blocco-Juve" (Juve Block). The second choice came down to Zambrotta and Pessotto, with Zambrotta ultimately claiming the spot. Although Pessotto had a lengthier tenure of 11 seasons at Juventus compared to Zambrotta's 7, I held Zambrotta in higher regard as an international player.  Gianluca Pessotto's international reputation was hurt by playing at the same time as Pablo Maldini. Pessotto did not have the same exposure outside of club football.  He only earned 22 caps for Italy.

Midfielders

-- In 2004, Marco Tardelli was named 37th in the UEFA Golden Jubilee Poll.  He was a two-way midfielder.  He was the first midfielder selected by this team. Defensive midfielder Giuseppe Furino is 3rd in all-time appearance behind Alessandro Del Piero, Gianluigi Buffon and Gaetano Scirea.  He narrowly missed out on my Juventus All-Time team, but he easily made this Italian only team.

Marco Tardelli 

-- I decided to go after Antonio Conte who spent 13 seasons here. He won the 1996 Champions' League Final as their captain.  He also finished as runner-up on three other occasions.  

-- Romeo Benetti was more of an AC Milan legend.  Instead, I took Fabio Capello and Claudio Marchisio.  Capello was the center of the team when he played for Juventus.  Marchisio was an unsung hero for Juventus winning 7 Serie A titles.  He played for them from 2005 to 2018 with a loan spell with Empoli.  

-- Luis Monti helped Juventus to four consecutive Serie A titles (1932 to 1935), also serving as the club's captain.  However, I considered him an Argentine player even through he helped Italy to win a World Cup.

-- Before Andreas Pirlo transferred to Juventus, he brought immense glory to both Italy and AC Milan. During his time at AC Milan, the team triumphed by securing the scudetto in his final season. However, upon joining Juventus, he immediately aided them in securing the coveted title in his debut season.   With Juventus, he would win four consecutive championships, contributing significantly to Juventus' impressive streak of nine consecutive titles.  He was named Serie A Player of the Year three straight times while with Juventus.  Besides, Andreas Pirlo was a deep-lying playmaker that this team badly needed.  He was mentioned several times as an All-Timer here.

-- Roberto Baggio established himself as one of the best players in the world while playing here.  He helped the club to win an UEFA Cup.  He scored 115 goals in 200 appearances during his five seasons at Juventus. His stint, however, was short.  He was replaced by Alessandro Del Piero.  Alessandro Del Piero is probably the club's greatest player.  He was their all-time leading scorer.

-- From 1930 to 1935, Giovanni Ferrari participated in 160 matches and netted 66 goals, showcasing remarkable performance. Furthermore, he was reputed to have contributed a substantial number of assists, although the count remained undocumented. Giovanni Ferrari was one of the first star players to don their Jersey. 

--  On the right wing, I only took Franco Causio was . I also looked into Federico Munerati and Mauro Camoranesi.  Giampiero Boniperti who sometimes operated on the wing would be the backup. 

-- For the left side, I had nobody significant.  Both Giampaolo Menichelli and Gino Stacchini were largely forgotten outside of Juventus. Alessandro Del Piero's playing style sometimes pushed him toward the left.  He would be the main threat from the left. Causio could also play on the left.

-- Omar Sivori also played for Italy, but again, I left him off the team because I considered him to be Argentine.  However, Mauro Camoranesi who never played for Argentina was eligible.

Forwards

-- Silvio Piola, despite being the all-time leading scorer in the Italian league, had a relatively short stint with us, spanning just two seasons. Consequently, his name was not closely associated with Juventus. In contrast, Roberto Bettega left a more significant impact during his time here. Bettega, a prominent figure in the 1970s and 1980s, scored an impressive 179 goals in 482 games for Juventus. He secured the third spot as the club's all-time leading scorer. So Roberto Bettega alongside Giampiero Boniperti were the undisputed choices for this team. 

-- Giampiero Boniperti formed "the Magical Trio" alongside Omar Sivori and John Charles.  Boniperti was the highest goal scorer in Juventus history for more than 40 years, until his record was broken by Alessandro Del Piero in 2006. He was sometimes known as Juventus' greatest Italian player before the emerge of Del Piero.

Giampiero Boniperti 

-- Born in France, Felice Borel was capped by Italy.  He never played for France, making him eligible.  He was the Serie A Top-scorer: 1932–33 (29 goals), 1933–34 (31 goals). 

-- Gianluca Vialli and Fabrizio Ravanelli were responsible for securing the 1996 Champions' League victory, yet their time at the club was relatively short-lived. Vialli managed to score 53 goals, while Ravanelli surpassed him with a total of 69 goals. However, despite Ravanelli's impressive goal tally, I personally favored Vialli as the superior player. In 1995, Vialli's outstanding performances during Juventus' successful Champions League campaign earned him the prestigious title of World Soccer's World Player of the Yea

-- Like Vialli, Paulo Rossi helped Juventus to win a European Cup, but his legacy in the history of Italian football was about Italy's World Cup victory.  His career here over here was overshadowed by other players. During his time here, he managed to score a modest total of only 44 goals.  So, I left him off the team.

Formation
Baggio and Del Piero seldom played together. 

\