Platini on Del Piero

UEFA president Michel Platini might have long left playing football but he still continues to follow the game and especially the Italian Serie A. In an interview to the Italian sports paper La Gazzetta Dello Sport Platini was full of praise for Juventus striker Alessandro Del Piero and for Inter Milan.

Del Piero finished the Italian Serie A season as top scorer with 21 goals, his highest goals tally since the 1997-1998 tally. That earned him a call-up to the Italian national sqaud for the Euro 2008 finals to be held in Austria and Switzerland next month.

Juventus qualified for next season's UEFA Champions League by finishing a comfortable third in the table and Del Piero was certainly the force behind the Old Lady of Turin's resurgence.

Michel Platini, who formerly starred for Juventus and now heads UEFA, said this about Del Piero:

"Important aquisitions? Juve already have a champion and it's Del Piero.

"Look what he has done at 34, it's extraordinary, I was way past it when I was 32.

"He has really worked hard over the past few seasons to be where he is now."

Platini also had a few words reserved for Inter Milan, this season's last day Serie A champions. He said:

"I am not surprised, their third league win in a row.

"There is no doubting they deserve it after 38 games."