Monza Transfer Market: Ivan Juric Speaks Plainly
“The team needs to be rounded out in the various positions on the field”: Monza coach Ivan Juric was very clear after the Biancorossi’s loss on Inter’s home field: a 4-1 victory for the Italian champions that came in the second half, as the two teams were tied at halftime.
“I have very high expectations for the transfer market; if we want to stay up, we need to make moves in every position,” added the Croatian coach. “Is there a goalkeeping problem? I feel very sorry for Pizzignacco, who was very unlucky tonight. Mangas? We expect a lot from him; in my opinion, he was a great signing by the club.”
The evening at San Siro revealed a lot about Monza’s current struggles: After the Nerazzurri took the lead on a goal by Calhanoglu and Varela equalized before halftime, it was actually a clumsy come-out by Pizzignacco in the second half that put the game back in play, with Zielinski ready to tap in the 2-1 goal. Then goals by Pio Esposito—who scored with a spectacular backheel—and Bisseck sealed the victory once and for all.
On the topic of goalkeepers, Monza’s transfer market is in full swing. Pizzignacco, born in 2001, had already caught the eye of Palermo, which is dealing with Jesse Joronen’s shoulder injury: Juric would not have objected to his potential transfer, provided the club received a suitable replacement. In recent weeks, the name of Orlando Gill—who had an excellent World Cup with Paraguay—had also come up, while the possibility of Michele Di Gregorio returning to Brianza, now on the fringes of Juventus’s plans, seemed to have been definitively ruled out.
Mangas, on the other hand, arrived this summer on loan from Sporting Lisbon with an obligation to buy should certain conditions be met. The Portuguese fullback, born in Olhão on March 19, 1998, boasts an impressive resume: after stints with Boavista, Bordeaux, Vitória Guimarães, and Spartak Moscow, he made 23 appearances for Sporting last season, including two Champions League matches against Bayern Munich and PSG.
