Leonardo Bonucci reveals he left Juventus for AC Milan because his 'bond had faded'

The centre-back made the shock move for £35m this month

Bonucci had been linked with a move to the Premier League (Getty)

Leonardo Bonucci has revealed the reason behind his shock move to AC Milan was because his “bond had faded” with Juventus after seven years at the club.

The 30-year-old, who made 227 appearances for Juve since joining from Bari in 2010, moved to big-spending Milan for a reported £35m after losing a second Champions League final in three seasons.

The Italian, who is widely considered one of the best centre-backs in the world had become a cult figure in Turin and was linked with moves to the Premier League and Chelsea last summer.

And he revealed that while his bond to the club was no longer as strong as it was, he admitted the feeling from Juventus was mutual.

“When you are part of a group for seven years, you leave something - I hope - beautiful inside each of your former team-mates. I had intense seven years with Juventus, in which I gave so much to them and vice versa,” he told Milan TV.

“In the last part of the last season, this bond had faded a bit on both sides and thus it was decided for us to go our separate ways. I was lucky enough to have this offer from Milan, which intensified quickly.

“From now on, I’ll think only of Milan.”

He also revealed that he aspired to place for the San Siro side in order to follow in the footsteps of one of his boyhood heroes, Alessandro Nesta.

He added: “The players who played for Milan when I was a child are legends for what they’ve won and given to football. Then, when I got bigger, Nesta became my idol and I went on to become a defender.”