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It\u2019s been a summer of change for Juventus Women. The club has seen two members of the original roster from 2017 head out for new adventures, signing with NWSL clubs in the United States. One of them, fullback Lisa Boattin, has one of the highest total number of appearances in club history. The other, striker Sofia Cantore, was named to the Women\u2019s Ballon d\u2019Or shortlist earlier this summer after the best season of her career.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Changes happen. But not often do you see two of the best on the roster leave within a couple of months of each other \u2014 especially for a club like Juve that has had so much stability when it comes to its Italian core.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
So what did Juventus Women do with less than a week to go in the summer transfer window? Make arguably their biggest signing they\u2019ve made in the last couple of years.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Juve announced on Thursday<\/a> \u2014 the final day of the women\u2019s transfer window in England \u2014 that they have signed Arsenal midfielder Lia W\u00e4lti after she spent the past seven incredibly successful years in London. Juventus Women have paid a reported \u20ac100,000 to sign W\u00e4lti, who was in the final year of her contract with Arsenal and has signed a two-year deal through 2027 with the Bianconere. W\u00e4lti arrives during a time in which Juve manager Max Canzi has decided to shift from the 3-4-1-2 he started using this preseason to more of a 3-5-2, with W\u00e4lti slated to step right into the holding midfielder position and join a midfield group that has plenty of young talent already on the roster.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n W\u00e4lti will wear the No. 13 jersey \u2014 which previously had only one player wear it at Juventus Women: Boattin.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Affectionately called \u201cWally\u201d at Arsenal, she described in a four-minute video posted to Instagram<\/a> that leaving the club was \u201cwithout any doubt, one of the hardest decisions I\u2019ve ever had to take in my life.\u201d The current captain of the Swiss national team with over 100 caps to her name, W\u00e4lti had been an integral part of the Arsenal midfield for much of her seven seasons in London. While she saw her minutes diminish last season \u2014 one where Arsenal went on to win the Women\u2019s Champions League final against Barcelona \u2014 she was a huge part of Arsenal\u2019s last Women\u2019s Super League-winning team in 2018-19 durng her debut campaign.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n So what sold W\u00e4lti on heading to Italy?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n According to JuventusNews24.com\u2019s Mauro Munno<\/a>, former Juventus Women manager Joe Montemurro was somebody that W\u00e4lti spoke with before she accepted the offer to move to Italy. The two worked together at Arsenal, and even though Montemurro saw things somewhat fall apart during his last few months in charge at Juve, he still holds the club and those in charge in high regard. So, with Montemurro\u2019s blessing, certainly some insight from Swiss teammate and current Juve center back Calligaris as well as a hour-long chat with Canzi about her tactical and leadership role within this current Juve squad, it was the kind of situation W\u00e4lti was sold on, according to Munno.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n And as much as Juve still have a strong leadership structure with the likes of new captain Martina Rosucci, Cristiana Girelli \u2014 a fellow Ballon d\u2019Or nominee like Cantore \u2014 and Barbara Bonansea, adding a player like W\u00e4lti feels like a no-brainer for a club that has lost some important pieces over the last year. She said so herself in her introductory interview with Juventus\u2019 official website<\/a>:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cI\u2019m a defensive midfielder, I think I read the game really well and I\u2019m a good tackler. Everybody used to say I make players around me better by covering for them, so I think my reading of the game gives the players around me the freedom to attack. I\u2019m a leader, I want to take responsibility in my role and be sure that we, firstly, don\u2019t concede, and secondly, look to create chances. I want to be a good teammate.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n It\u2019s a huge signing for Juventus Women and Serie A Women (hey new name!) as a whole to have such an accomplished player arrive like W\u00e4lti has. Yes, even with the kind of players they have lost this summer, most notably Boattin and Cantore. Juve were able to reinvest some of that money to bring in a quality player that should prove vital domestically and in the Women\u2019s Champions League, which will have its new 16-team league phase draw later this month.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n