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Italy defender Leonardo Bonucci has come out and blasted both Juventus and club manager Massimiliano Allegri for the way they handled his exit. This comes after Bonucci moved to join Bundesliga side Union Berlin in the recently concluded summer transfer window.
Bonucci has accused his former club and manager for falsifying stories about his future at the Allianz Stadium. According to the Euro 2020 winner, the Old Lady were uncertain about his future and conveyed their decision very late into the transfer window, unlike the reports in the media.
Bonucci was left extremely livid by the mess in the summer and called it all his biggest humiliation in his playing career. Speaking to Italian outlet Mediaset (via Fabrizio Romano), Leonardo Bonucci said the following:
"Manager (Allegri) reported some fake stories. It’s not true that Juventus told me months ago, in October and in February, about their intention to part ways with me."
He added:
"In May, I told Juventus board that I was open to stay as 5/6th choice to help all their young players. Juventus directors only told me on July 13 that I was out of their project… after rumors on newspapers. This was the biggest humiliation I’ve suffered.”
Leonardo Bonucci has also claimed that he himself read rumors about his exit from the club. The hierarchy, therefore, never had any intentions of keeping the defender at the club. He said:
“I’ve smelled something by reading it in the newspapers, that I would no longer be part of the Juventus squad and that my presence would hinder the growth of the team."
He went on to add:
“This was the humiliation I suffered after more than 500 games in Bianconero... everyone showed me their closeness for the disrespectful behavior of the clun."
At the time of writing, Bonucci is yet make his debut for Union Berlin. The defender was an unused substitute during their 3-0 defeat at the hands of RB Leipzig earlier this month.
Leonardo Bonucci is a modern-day legend at Juventus
Despite his exit leaving a sour taste in the mouth, Leonardo Bonucci will always remain an icon at Juventus. The Italy defender had two separate spells with the Old Lady.
In his two spells at the club, Bonucci went on to make 502 appearances across all competitions for the Turin-based club. He also contributed 37 goals and 10 assists along the way and was a key player in the team's recent dominance in Serie A.
Bonucci went on to win eight Serie A titles, four Coppa Italia cups and five Italian Super Cups with the Bianconeri. He also played in two UEFA Champions League finals but suffered defeat on both occasions, losing to Barcelona in 2015 and Real Madrid in 2017.
