10 Players Who Rejected Barcelona
4. Alessandro del Piero
The story of Alessandro del Piero and Juventus is a romantic one. Bound together like man and wife, the two never parted for 19 years, even after The Old Lady had slipped into Serie B as a result of the Calciopoli scandal.
The Italian maestro, so often seen as a beacon and ambassador for the club, appeared over 700 times for I Bianconeri and notching 290 goals along the way. A world-class superstar, overseas interest was inevitable, but such was the love that existed between player and club, he was never going to be prized away from the Stadio del Alpi while he still had goals to offer.
''Del Piero is Juventus. During the prime of his career, he rejected Manchester United and Barcelona. He did that for love. His future has to be Juventus. - Alessandro del Pieros agent, Claudio Pasqualin, March 2012.
Perhaps it was just a desperate agent agitating for the clubs hierarchy to present his client with a deal as the clock ticked down towards the end of the season, but if his words rang true, then that certainly did show a certain degree of loyalty to snub a club of the magnitude and grandeur of Barcelona in favour of sticking with I Bianconeri.