In these 3 years Juric has never been banal: from the sentences against Cairo to those against the fans after Torino-Salernitana
A strong character, which you may not even like, combined with an enormous work culture: this is and has been Ivan Juric in these 3 years at Toro. A stubborn coach, with clear ideas, who perhaps could have done better in the field of communication. He has never managed to get the fans to get along with the club, which was perhaps an impossible task. In these 3 years, there have been two conferences and three episodes that left their mark on him. His intent has always been to unite, but he hasn’t succeeded 100%. Below are the conferences and key episodes in detail.
Criticism in Cairo after Fiorentina-Turin
Juric arrived at Toro in the 2021/2022 season. Debut with defeat, Torino-Atalanta 1-2. Then another defeat: Fiorentina-Torino 2-1. In the press conference, Juric vented: “Toro has taken the path of austerity, that is, cutting costs in any way regardless of the strength of the team. It’s legitimate, the only problem is that my staff and I were not aware of the idea of taking this path of austerity.” Then he said about Pobega: “He arrives on a dry loan, without any rights for us. We needed a player of this type, when this is the case you accept compromises even if it’s not a good thing to work for other clubs.” He had made it clear that he was not asking for the moon, but was expecting some movement. At the photo finish, some players had been taken and the season hadn’t gone badly.
The quarrel with Vagnati
The most memorable episode occurred in the summer before the start of the 2022/2023 season. Il Toro was in retreat in Austria. There was an argument between Juric and Vagnati, complete with a video that went around the world. The fans at that moment felt embarrassed and ashamed. Insults, shouts and shoving between the two, with Marco Pellegri dividing them. Then everything was clarified and no action was taken. But an indelible page remains in this three-year period, even if it is unpleasant.
The middle finger to the fans
Another episode is that of the middle finger. Torino-Sassuolo 2-1, 2022/2023 season. The Curva Maratona entered the Stadium 15 minutes later, in protest given the team’s poor results. Juric was disqualified and followed the match from the box in the stands. The match was played in a heavy atmosphere, with constant insults to the team. At the end of the game, with the 3 points in his pocket, Juric turned towards the Curva and showed the middle finger. Endless controversy and then the coach clarified with the fans, explaining that the gesture was not aimed at them.
The criticism of Toro fans
Torino-Salernitana: full stadium and team supported from the first to the last minute. 0-0 final and boos from the public, given that Salernitana already had one foot in Serie B. At the end of the match, Juric said: “Today there was a good environment, it should always be like this because it shouldn’t be based on results and instead not all fans have the Toro spirit. Hearing talk about mediocrity is uniquely sad, my greatest regret is this.” The following day, the coach was forced, immersed in a vortex of criticism, to clarify what he said in the press conference. He apologized and tried to bring the community together. But many fans didn’t go down well with those phrases and lessons from Toro.
The gesture against Italian
Another episode that happened this year, in Torino-Fiorentina 0-0: that gesture which, according to the reconstruction made by Sky, would have seen Juric make a rather dramatic gesture aimed at Italiano. Ricci was unfairly sent off at the end of the first half. Match played well by Toro, but conditioned by this senseless expulsion. In the final, Juric loses his head and after being sent off he turns to Italiano in the manner mentioned above. At the end of the match, in front of the cameras, the two clarified and Juric admitted that he had exaggerated, apologizing to Italiano.
