Juventus coach Antonio Conte rubbishes Didier Drogba reports

16 December 2012 17:32
Juventus coach Antonio Conte has dismissed reports the Serie A champions are on the verge of signing former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba. A report in Sunday's Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper claimed Juve had made "significant progress" in their bid to sign Drogba, who the report claimed has agreed in principle to an 18-month deal. The 34-year-old signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with Shanghai Shenhua in July but the Ivory Coast international could be reconsidering his options after a disappointing start to his career in China. However Conte insists Juventus - as well as other major clubs in Italy - are in no financial position to sign top players. Speaking after the 3-0 win over Atalanta on Sunday which extended Juve's lead at the top of Serie A to seven points, Conte said: "Transfer talk seems disrespectful to the players in my team, especially at the current moment. "It's a critical time as far as the economy is concerned and it's the same for several other teams. "We won't be signing any top players because we're not in a position to. Neither us, nor other top teams in the Italian league."

Source: team_talk