Nedved dreaming of Europe
Friday 18 October 2002
By Marcus Christenson
Pavel Nedved was charged with the unenviable task of replacing French
master Zinedine Zidane at the heart of the Juventus FC midfield when he
joined the Turin club from S.S. Lazio in the summer of 2001.
Working class
Many players would have crumbled under the pressure but Nedved, who is a
self-confessed workaholic, reached top form during the second half of the
season as Juventus overtook Internazionale FC to win their 26th Scudetto.
Excellent form
And he has carried that form into the new season, with Juventus among the
early pacesetters in the Italian league and leading UEFA Champions League
Group E with seven points from a possible nine.
Title challenge
Juventus's impressive performances in Europe this season have been particularly
important for Nedved, who is adamant that Italian clubs will be challenging
for the Champions League title in May following a few disappointing seasons.
'Year of the Italian clubs'
Nedved told uefa.com: "I think that the Italian teams this year want to show
that we are not as bad as the last few years have made us seem. I think that
this will be the year of the Italian clubs in Europe. We at Juventus will
obviously try and go as far as possible and I wish the same for all the other
Italian teams in the competition.
'New signings have settled in'
"Things are going well at Juve at the moment but I don't think there are any
special reasons for that," he added. "It is just that all the new signings
have settled in quickly and we are playing exactly the way we want to at the
moment."
Glory trail
Juventus last won the Champions League in 1996 and, after winning the Italian
championship last season, Nedved is in no doubt as to which title he craves
the most. He said: "As a club we at Juventus don't have a preference but
personally I would have to say the Champions League."
Multiple roles
This season Juventus coach Marcello Lippi has alternated between using Nedved
in a free role behind two strikers and in a wider position out on the left.
Nedved has looked at ease in both positions and scored a magnificent goal
against FC Dynamo Kyiv in the Champions League last month when he stole the
ball in central midfield and danced past a defender before beating Vitaliy
Reva with a thunderous shot.
'I play where I'm told'
The Czech international, who has earned more than 60 caps for his country,
said: "Well, that shows that I can play in different positions and it is not
really a problem for me. I can play behind the strikers but also in all the
other positions in midfield. It is the same with the national team because
with them I have played on the right, the left and in the centre. In the end
I will just play where the coach wants me to play."
Czech hopes
The Czech Republic missed out on the FIFA World Cup in the summer after losing
to Belgium in the play-offs and are now hoping to start afresh in order to
qualify for the finals of EURO 2004?in Portugal. They have started well with
wins over Moldova and Belarus in a group also including the Netherlands and
Austria.
'Wasted years'
Nedved is confident that the Czech team have the qualities to reach the
finals and believes that missing the World Cup could even work in their
favour as they are desperate to make amends. He said: "We wasted two years
when we lost in the qualifying round to Belgium, but now we have to start
again in order to reach EURO 2004? That is our main goal now."
http://www.uefa.com/magazine/news/Kind=4/newsId=38856.html
--
But let me be a lover in the Savage Garden with you, and the light that went
out of life would come back in a great burst of glory. Out of mortal flesh I
would pass into eternity. I would be one of you.
--
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