Leonardo Bonucci Vows to Repay Juve Fans on the Pitch After 'Emotional' Departure & Return
Leonardo Bonucci has spoken to the press for the first time since returning to Juventus and has told reporters that his move to AC Milan was fashioned out of emotion and anger.
The Italian defender left Turin for San Siro last summer. But he's back after a solitary season with the Rossoneri and is aiming to get the fans back on his side.
"I wanted to go back to Juventus because it was missing home," he explained (via Tutto Juve). Every trip is a return home, I thank Juventus, the coach and my agent who allowed me to be here today and start this new path with so much enthusiasm, I want to improve and many objectives to be achieved.
"When I chose to leave Juventus it was because my emotions led me to make those decisions, and over time I realized that the decisions made in a moment of anger are not the right ones."
Fans were understandably upset when Bonucci left Juve last summer and his return only served to make them angrier. The reception hasn't been a good one, but the defender hopes to regain their support eventually.
"My answer will have to be on the pitch because I am a professional," he replied after being asked if he felt an apology was in order.
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"If you present me again today an offer to leave Juventus I will never think about it, I have metabolized, I thought about it, Juventus was all for me in the years that I lived as a footballer and as a human being, in these years I have experienced extra football situations and Juventus has always made me feel his support.
"We left with a handshake, maybe because I knew in my heart that what could happen Today it is a new challenge with the enthusiasm I had not before, today I feel better, I have to recover something and I will have the chance to compare myself to the best every day I will defend the Juventus shirt like I did in the past years, there is nothing but victory."
"I had the good fortune to be in contact with Gattuso, who is a great person and who has raised the fate of Milan," he added, touching on his time with Milan.
"I return after a year with a baggage of important things on a human level. even more the relationship with my children, my family who stayed here in Turin, I feel like a better human being, ready to give the best to Juventus.
"On the Milan project, we saw well, we tried to isolate ourselves, I I look forward: I am very willing and determined to start this season with Juventus."
Having made his way back to Juve, the defender is now keen to end the side's Champions League heartbreak and wants another go at Real Madrid.
"The goal is to return to Madrid, be competitive in every game, play for the Champions League, the Scudetto and the Italian Cup," he declared. "When you wear the Juventus shirt, the goals are clear from the start."
