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Former Juventus forward Vincent Pericard has claimed that he was loaned out to Portsmouth after inviting the club’s vice-president Roberto Bettega’s mistress on a night out.
Pericard joined the Old Lady from Saint Etienne in 2000 and was tipped to become the next big thing in Turin. He racked up goals for the reserves team and even made his full debut for the senior side, in a Champions League tie against Arsenal no less. Pericard’s progression in Turin came to a halt following a misunderstanding, with him being loaned out to Portsmouth in its aftermath.
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According to the Frenchman, he and his countrymen Aboubacar Fofana and Frantz Bertin asked their Italian tutor out for a drink. The tutor was supposedly Bettega’s mistress, and he made sure the three youngsters were punished for their audacity. Explaining why the Italian giants loaned him out to Portsmouth, Pericard told the Daily Star:
“It was a shock, a great disappointment with some feelings of unfairness about the way it happened. From the moment I joined Juventus, everything was going well. I was the top striker when I was playing with the reserve teams, I was with the first team training, going to Champions League games. There was no indication that, firstly, I was not good enough for Juventus and secondly that my future was not at Juventus.
“It was one evening with my French colleagues where we decided to go out for a drink. We were just at home and we thought ‘who should we invite’ and one of my friends suggested we invite the Italian tutor we had at the time.”
He continued:
“I was the one to get my phone out and message her. But unfortunately, unknown to me and to us, she happened to be in bed with one of the directors of Juventus. Literally ten minutes after I sent the text, I got a phone call from the director saying ‘you three in my office tomorrow’.”
Vincent Pericard later rejected Juventus to remain with Portsmouth
Vincent Pericard would have loved to succeed in Italy. However, once he was loaned out to Portsmouth and became a part of the team, he did not want to return to Turin. As per the former attacker, the Italian juggernauts wanted to bring him back, but Pericard had no intention of joining the team that had unfairly treated him.
Opening up on why he rejected Juve’s call, he said:
“At the end of my loan at Portsmouth, I was given the opportunity to go back to Juventus.
“They wanted me back but I said ‘no’ because I enjoyed my time at Portsmouth so much. I felt like it was time for me to move on.”
He continued:
“It was a huge decision. I remember very well because at Juventus I got brought in to become the next big talent. I was in the first team, but not fully in the first team.
“But when I came to Portsmouth, the reason why I loved it so much was because I felt like an integral player. I was part of the first team, playing weekly in and out, I was on the pitch and scoring goals. The second thing is playing at Fratton Park, feeling the atmosphere, where the fans were so close to the pitch and very much on your toes.”
Pericard featured in 49 games for Portsmouth across competitions, recording 10 goals.
