Ever since returning to Serie A following their demotion for match-fixing, Juventus have had a terrible run in the transfer market.

Third and second-placed finishes in their two years back in the top flight are largely thanks to players who stuck with Juve during their season in Serie B such as Alessandro Del Piero and Giorgio Chiellini.

In contrast, new recruits such as midfielders Tiago and Christian Poulsen have been frustrating at best while former Aston Villa defender Olof Mellberg lasted just a season before being shipped off to Olympiakos.

Juve have also tried to sell Poulsen and Tiago but both players have said they would rather stay.

Right back Zdenek Grygera has not convinced all the Juve faithful while striker Amauri had a good start to last term following a big move from Palermo but his form fizzled out towards the end of the campaign.

For this season Juve have re-signed Fabio Cannavaro from Real Madrid, a move which has angered fans who have not forgiven him for leaving the club following their demotion. (Cannavaro argues it was Juve’s economic decision to sell).

Brazilian playmaker Diego, who has arrived from Werder Bremen, obviously has the skill but supporters worry his style of play will not suit Juve’s traditional 4-4-2 formation and may upset the apple cart.

Juve’s bid for Udinese midfielder Gaetana D’Agostino looks to have failed and media reports say they are now targeting Liverpool’s Xabi Alonso having surprisingly opted to pursue Poulsen last year rather than the technically superior Spaniard.

Can they get it right this time and really challenge Inter Milan for the scudetto?

PHOTO: Juventus midfielder Christian Poulsen (R) fights for the ball with Inter Milan’s Luis Figo during their Italian Serie A match in Turin April 18, 2009. REUTERS/Alessandro Garofalo

Italy’s entire soccer infrastructure needs an overhaul, captain Fabio Cannavaro said after the world champions arrived home from their Confederations Cup nightmare.

Elimination in the group stages after defeats to Egypt and Brazil followed a difficult few weeks for Serie A, with AC Milan’s Kaka sold to Real Madrid and other top players threatening to leave the stuttering league.

“We need reconstruction and not just the national team. Let’s start with the infrastructure, the stadiums, but also the youth teams,” the 35-year-old Juventus defender told reporters.

Pundits have said Italy have too many ageing players and that coach Marcello Lippi is wrong to expect them to repeat their 2006 World Cup success in South Africa next year.

Domestically, Serie A clubs are losing out on revenue because, unlike English sides, they do not own their stadiums.

Milan have also said favourable Spanish tax laws make it difficult to compete in the transfer market with La Liga.

No Italian side reached the Champions League quarter-finals last season and few big name players look likely to head to Serie A for next term.

Promoting young Italians such as Inter Milan’s teenage fullback Davide Santon is the obvious answer but Cannavaro warned that the quality was lacking.

“Enough with this story about the oldies, if I really annoy people then my place is up for grabs but Lippi makes the decisions,” added the defender, who equalled Paolo Maldini’s all-time Italy caps record of 126 against Brazil.

“I don’t see any phenomenons around in Italian football. There are no more Tottis, Baggios or Del Pieros. Today it is enough for a defender to be tall, cute, blonde and a dribbler and they think that makes them a good player.”

AS Roma striker Francesco Totti has retired from international football while fellow World Cup winner Alessandro Del Piero, 34, has been overlooked by Lippi for almost a year.

PHOTOS: Italy’s Fabio Cannavaro (R) challenges Brazil’s Luis Fabiano during their Confederations Cup soccer match at the Loftus Versfeld stadium in Pretoria June 21, 2009. REUTERS/Dylan Martinez

During the 1980s and 90s, Italian defences were world-renowned as the toughest of the lot.

The word catenaccio became known in other languages and jokes about boring Italian teams winning 1-0 were all the rage.

The likes of Franco Baresi, Alessandro Costacurta and Paolo Maldini were hailed while Fabio Cannavaro was a rare defender to win the Ballon d’Or and FIFA world player after his stunning defensive displays helped Italy lift the 2006 World Cup.

Now everything has changed.

Cannavaro is coming to the end of the line after some stuttering displays for Real Madrid. Maldini, 40, is in his last season before retirement and only plays now and then when his weary body allows. AC Milan team mate Alessandro Nesta has missed the past two seasons with injury. (more…)

Italy may be thinking the gods are against them after World Cup-winning captain Fabio Cannavaro was ruled out of Euro 2008 after being injured in their first training session in Austria. They needn’t worry too much.

The 2006 World Player of Year suffered ankle ligament damage after a robust tackle by fellow defender Giorgio Chiellini, who will now be in the running to take his place in the backline.

The dogged Chiellini is very much in the mould of his captain and would not let the Azzurri down. In fact, he would offer more pace than Cannavaro, who is 34 and has slowed down a lot since Germany two years ago.

The Real Madrid defender is also not as composed as he was and tends to make more errors. In contrast, fellow centre back Andrea Barzagli has hardly put a foot wrong after bursting on to the international scene during Italy’s qualifying campaign.

Marco Materazzi is also in the squad and although he has his faults, his height made him tower over Cannavaro when they played together. He remains a good option.

Defender Alessandro Gamberini is also jetting out to Austria as a replacement for Cannavaro following an excellent season at Fiorentina.

As for the captaincy, authoritative goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is likely to take the armband. He is highly respected by his team mates and can certainly blow away the myth that keepers do not make good skippers.

All is not lost for Italy.

Mark Meadows, with the Italy team in Baden near Vienna