Campeonato, di Calcio, Italiano: Epiosdo Due

Buon giorno and welcome to the second instalment of my retro Italian adventure with Juventus in Championship Manager 97-98. If you missed last week's episode then you can catch up here. 

After our defeat to Milan in the last outing, the last thing we need is the Champions League creeping up on us, although we should turn over Maccabi Haifa on our home turf. Cue the music

Perhaps my optimism was misplaced as we labour to a dour goalless draw at the Delle Alpi against our Israeli opponents. We manage ten shots on goal but can only get two of them on target, Maccabi don't offer much and it's a case of they get what they came for by going back to Israel with a point. 

French midfielder Corentin Martins comes in for £4,500,000 from Strasbourg but it'll be a week or two before he can make his debut as he comes to us with a slight injury. 

There's more injury misery for us when right-back Marco Zamboni limps off in the first half of our home clash against Lazio but we're able to put it behind us as the returning Alessandro Del Piero gives us the lead although we're pegged back when our former striker Alen Boksic comes back to haunt us with a late equaliser. 

Barcelona test my resolve with a lucrative offer for my captain Didier Deschamps, after some careful consideration it's a polite but firm no grazie to the Catalonians. Instead they sign prodigious French winger Thierry Henry despite us having a bid accepted for the young Moncao man. 

The injury crisis leaves us without any fit recognised right-backs which leads me to call upon teenager Pietro Nardi (a CPU generated player) for his first team debut as we travel to Genoa to face Sampdoria. 

Filipo Inzaghi gives us the lead after just five minutes but that's as good as it gets for us as Sampa could possibly feel aggrieved at the fact they only get a draw from the game. Sandro Tovalieri equalises for the home side and the great Beppe Signori runs rings around us and we're indebted to Angelo Peruzzi for pulling off a number of fine saves to keep us in the contest. 

We close out this instalment by welcoming Fiorentina to the Delle Alpi off the back of our lucky escape in Genoa. Despite Fabio Pecchia adding his name to the growing injury list, Del Piero gives us a deserved lead after 20 minutes. In arguably our best performance of the season so far, we manage to create plenty and stifle the potent attacking threat of Gabriel Batistuta so it comes as little surprise when Didier Deschamps comes up with the winning goal early in the second period. 

The win sees us climb up the Serie A table into seventh place but still some distance off the upper echelons of the league. Plenty of work to do still but we're just about starting to get back in the game. 

See you next Sunday, Ciao For Now!!