Michel Platini - Juventus Legend

Welcome everyone to my new Football Manager story! I had some amazing feedback from my work with Lazio which was my first ever FM story. I feel that now that I know the ropes and have grown as a writer I can now take my stories to the next level.

Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli has caved into pressure from the club's fans and terminated former AC Milan manager Allegri's contract only one week after his appointment to the Serie A champions.

Juve fans started a petition following the announcement of their new manager and seven days later the plea to be rid of Allegri was 30,000 signatures strong. Andrea Agnelli has addressed the media following the decision and was quick to reassure the fans that they are valued and a new manager will be appointed soon: "We apologize to Massimiliano for wasting his time, but at Juventus Football Club the fans mean everything. The board and I want to assure the fans that we will explore all avenues and make sure that Antonio [Conte]'s hard work does not become undone. We will bring in a manager who will retain our Scudetto and take the club to the next step." Allegri has been unavailable to comment but it is believed that he accepted mutual termination of his 2 year contract and will not receive a compensation package.

The rumours have began as to who will be the new manager in Turin for the new Serie A season with former Zenit manager Luciano Spalletti the current bookies favourite. The other front-runners are as follows:

Luciano Spalletti 3/1
Roberto Mancini 5/1
Cesare Prandelli 7/1
Michael Laudrup 10/1
Gianluca Vialli 15/1
David Moyes 100/1

Nice start mate! I will follow!

#MoyesIn

Really, though, great start, love to see another Matt Cox story, especially another Serie A story!! Best of luck with Juventus, even though I personally hate the Old Lady

Moyes has got to be the front-runner, real quality manager :P. Looking forward to your story

I loved your Lazio story MCox, really pumped to see how this one develops!

Great start! Will follow

Your last story was brilliant, so I'm definitely following this one as well

The football world has been left in shock as Michel Platini has terminated his contract with UEFA and was today unveiled as manager of his former club Juventus following the sacking of Massimiliano Allegri.

Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli has appointed Bianconeri legend Michel Platini manager on a one year deal following his decision to quit his post as president of FIFA. Platini is considered the Old Lady's greatest ever player and was even voted as the fan's favourite in an official Juventus poll last year, just shading out Alessandro Del Piero.

The announcement that Platini has left his position as UEFA president comes as no shock following his well documented disagreements and public rows with FIFA president Sepp Blatter. It is believed the final nail in the coffin was the fact that Blatter wanted to cut down on the amount of spots available for European teams to qualify for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil from 15 to 13. With Platini finding the FIFA president's negative attitude towards his European department insulting, the 72 times capped Frenchman has quit his post which he held since 2007 and will now lead Juventus in the 2013/14 season.

Considered one of the best passers in football history as well as one of the best free kick specialists and finishers, Platini holds the record for most goals (9) scored in European Championship final tournaments despite only appearing in the 1984 edition. Platini scored 68 times in 147 games for the Bianconeri and 41 times in 72 caps for France.

In a Juventus shirt he won the Serie A title with Juventus in 1984 and 1986, the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1984, the 1984 European Super Cup, the European Cup in 1985 and the 1985 Intercontinental Cup. He finished top scorer in Serie A for three consecutive seasons (1982–83, 1983–84, and 1984–85), and won a hat-trick of European Footballer of the Year awards (1983 through 1985). He was also voted Player of the Year by World Soccer magazine in 1984 and 1985 and won the European Championships with France in 1984.

Platini does have previous managerial experience as he was named coach of the French national side on 1 November 1988 in a bid to turn around the fortunes of Les Blues following disappointing tournament displays. The focus of the team shifted to qualifying for the 1992 European Championship in Sweden. France excelled in the qualifying stages, winning all eight of their group matches, including notable victories away to Spain and Czechoslovakia. After a record 19-match unbeaten run, they were among the favourites to win the competition and Platini was named Manager of the Year by the World Soccer Awards. But a string of uninspiring performances in warm-up matches, followed by France's first-round elimination from the tournament, led Platini to step down as coach.

Platini's first competitive game in charge will be the SuperCoppa Italia against Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico on August 18th. Juventus open their Serie A campaign at home to Napoli a week later.

Good choice of manager! Good luck mate

Love Platini! Best of luck!

Joethequin: Thank you buddy, I appreciate it.
Neal: #MoyesIn is now trending worldwide Thanks mate, I'm sure Bergomi and Totti don't like the Old Lady!
Ducksworth: If Moyes got the Juventus job in real life, the apocalypse would be upon us!
Fzemdegs: thanks mate really appreciate it, I'm going to run this story until FM15 comes out!
MrJK: thanks mate, appreciate it!
Zed: a lot of love for Lazio here today lads! thanks mate, and thank you for the perfect banner!
Squirmy: thanks buddy, Platini is a legend!

Official transcript - Italian media press conference, Michel Platini unveiling.
Juventus Stadium, Turin - 9:00am Wednesday 19th June, 2013

Reporter: Welcome back to Juventus Mr. Platini. What made you decide that you should take this post and leave your position at UEFA?

Platini: Thank you, it is great to be back with the Bianconeri and I have felt so loved upon my return. I had been President of UEFA for seven years and I felt that there was a growing tension between Mr. Blatter and myself. This has been widely publicized and I know that Sepp is not so popular these days. When the opportunity to return to management came up, especially with my beloved Juventus I could not say no.

Reporter: You were manager of France for four years back in the late 80's. Do you feel that experience will help you in your new job?

Platini: I enjoyed managing Les Bleus very much, but modern football has changed in so many ways since I was a manager and also a player. Luckily I have been a major part of it and believe that I have what it takes to make it in this modernized era.

Reporter: Juventus had a lot of success under Antonio Conte and went on to be a real Serie A superpower, do you feel you can keep up that trend?

Platini: Antonio did a fantastic job and it was great to see the Bianconeri play such beautiful football. But not only do I believe that I can keep up the work Conte did, but expand on it too. I want to see the club lift the Champions League. It was the best feeling as a player and these players deserve that experience.

Reporter: Do you have any transfer targets in mind heading into pre-season?

Platini: I have a few names in my head that I will look at. I met the staff yesterday and discussed possibilities with the board and scouting network, but I will take my first training session tomorrow and evaluate every player fairly.

Reporter: Will you be bringing in any of your own staff?

Platini: I will be bringing in an assistant but right now that is all I have planned. There is a great setup here and sometimes drastic change can disturb the balance.

Reporter: What message do you want to send to the Juventus fans ahead of the new season?

Platini: I promise I will put my all into this club, just as I always have done. The fans deserve the best and that is what I will give them, I will lead this team now like I did 30 years ago and make us one of the biggest teams in the world once again.

Juventus Press Officer: Thank you members of the media, there will be no further questions to Mr. Platini.