Former Juventus defender Stephan Lichtsteiner has offered insight into the strained relationship between the club and Leonardo Bonucci.
Bonucci has been embroiled in a dispute with the club since they deemed him surplus to requirements and requested his departure from the Allianz Stadium.
The experienced centre-back had enjoyed a lengthy and successful tenure at the club, expecting a more amicable departure. However, he was asked to leave at the start of this season, a move he evidently disapproved of, and he was ultimately pushed out before joining Union Berlin.
It is anticipated that Bonucci may take legal action against the club, asserting that his reputation has been damaged as a result of this ordeal.
Lichtsteiner has now shared some insights into when their relationship began to deteriorate, shedding light on the circumstances surrounding their falling out.
He said, as quoted by Tuttojuve:
“I still remember the match in Porto. I think that was when things changed between him and the club. When he returned from Milan, things weren’t going well.
“The difficult thing for a player, of course, is that even if you win a lot, even if you get a lot of results, if you don’t do as well as before, the team naturally looks around. The one thing I never like to do is wash clothes in public. In fact, as I said before, I don’t it’s always easy to accept and perhaps as a player, I, too, thought I was right in certain situations. It’s part of life, you know.”
Juve FC Says
Bonucci’s spell at the club should have ended better, but a top side like Juve has to make decisions quickly.
As he struggled to stay fit last term, that left the club with no choice but to offload him while they could.
He needs to move on, but we know he is an adult and would be determined to get back at us if he wants to.
