Juventus have officially confirmed sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli has joined the club after leaving Napoli last week. The club released an official statement confirming the move on their website:
Eclectic, innovative and capable. These are just some of the adjectives to describe the profile of Cristiano Giuntoli, Juventus’ newest Football Director. Used to working behind the scenes, the new Bianconeri director has been able to establish himself in Italian football over the years thanks to his sharp choices in the transfer market, while also successfully doing things out of the ordinary.
Born in Florence, Cristiano embarked on his career as a footballer playing in Serie C and D, appearing for Prato, Colligiana, Latina, and then Imperia, Sanremese and Savona. Having hung up his boots, at the age of 36 he began to take his first steps as a director.
His first experience away from the pitch came with Spezia, after which Giuntoli moved to Carpi as deputy Sporting Director, and after a few months (in October 2009) he was promoted to Sporting Director by the club’s owner, Stefano Bonacini. Carpi’s move proved to be more than successful, and within five seasons the club achieved four promotions, going from Serie D to achieve a historic first-ever promotion to Serie A. Huge credit for this project must be given to Cristiano Giuntoli, the man who took some perhaps unexpected decisions that contributed to Carpi’s rapid growth. His time at Carpi ended after six seasons full of excellent results, and his move to Napoli was an endorsement of the work he had done in Emilia-Romagna.
Affirmation at the top of the Italian football pyramid wasn’t long in coming. Cristiano continued his climb, confirming the quality of his work in an entirely different environment. After joining Napoli in 2015, he won his first trophy with the 2019/20 Italian Cup and consecrated himself by building the team that became Italian champions in 2022/23.
Now, a new chapter in Cristiano Giuntoli’s story begins, with the hope that he can enjoy more success with the Bianconeri.
Best of luck, Cristiano, and welcome to Juventus!
[Image from Juventus.com]
