Juventus GM Jean-Claude Blanc insists they're the most forward-thinking club in Serie A.

"Our advantage is in the 'virtuous' way we work," he told the Gazzetta dello Sport. "We have been able to sign Diego, one of the top 15 players in Europe, because we have balanced the books.

"Other arrivals are also planned. There is a less modern approach to football that every now and then forces clubs to sell big players to stay afloat.

"How many sides with balanced books have won the League title in Europe this season?"

Blanc also defended the decision to name Ciro Ferrara as coach.

"I can see his appointment as a show of faith in a young tactician, just as Milan did with Leonardo. These are courageous choices that accelerate the modernisation of Italian football.

"Ferrara has victory in his DNA, as shown by his career as a player and as Marcello Lippi's assistant manager at the World Cup.

"He knows the players and directors, has contagious enthusiasm, charisma and intelligence that allows him to take from the best Coaches he has worked with. He also controlled the youth academy, which for us is vital."