All summer long, supporters and observers alike engaged in heated debates about the midfield issues blighting Juventus. The heavy defeat suffered in the Champions League final had exposed problems in that area of Max Allegri’s side, Real Madrid running rampant in Cardiff against an Old Lady who had no answers in the middle of the park.
The signing of Blaise Matuidi was expected to help somewhat, but ongoing concerns over the fitness of Claudio Marchisio and Sami Khedira left many wondering if the Bianconeri were still a player short. The Supercoppa Italiana saw them crumble once again, this time Lazio taking advantage of a team that – after six utterly dominant domestic campaigns – suddenly looked flawed and fragile.
Their shortcomings were laid bare yet again as Barcelona notched a 3-0 win at Camp Nou, only for the Coach to then unleash a young player who had previously been something of an afterthought in those earlier discussions. Rodrigo Bentancur joined Juve back in April, the club taking up a €9.5 million option they had secured when Carlos Tevez returned to Boca Juniors in June 2015.
The Uruguayan signed a five-year contract but made just three brief cameos as a substitute during the early part of this season. However, during a hectic run of games last month, Allegri opted to hand him his first start as Fiorentina visited Turin.
Paired in a two-man midfield alongside Matuidi, Bentancur delivered a surprisingly mature performance, looking immediately comfortable in every phase. He was solid defensively, registering three tackles and two clearances according to WhoScored.com, while looking equally adapt at building play as he connected with 89.3% of a game-high 75 pass attempts.
Returning to the bench for the Turin derby, he expected to only be a substitute for the Champions League clash with Olympiacos too, but Miralem Pjanić suffered an injury in the pre-match warm-up. Bentancur was once again thrust into the fray and – like many of his team-mates – he looked subpar over the opening 45 minutes.
When the final whistle blew however, he had recorded three tackles, four interceptions and four clearances, completed 93% of his 86 pass attempts and left little doubt that he was ready to compete in Europe’s elite competition. If his early nerves reminded everyone that he is still only 20 years old, his second half display was exactly the kind of showing that Allegri had hinted at during the club’s summer tour of the US, repeatedly praised the youngster only for his words to be dismissed by those who expected a big name signing.
“I'm very happy with Bentancur and I think he may be the surprise package of the season,” the Juve boss proclaimed back in August, but shortly after the Olympiacos game ended he was quick to highlight areas for improvement. “Rodrigo played well,” Allegri told reporters at his post-match press conference. “He's got a sweet foot on him and he won lots of balls for us today but he still needs to do better when receiving the ball and playing it forward.”
Yet Bentancur’s immediate impact has won over the Italian press, who showered him with praise the morning after that 2-0 victory. “Giving him a ball is like putting it in the bank.” wrote La Gazzetta dello Sport’s Jacopo Gerna. “What has already emerged is an extraordinary talent for managing the ball, treating it like water in the desert.” Tuttosport were far less subtle, simply urging fans to “call him Mr Champions League.”
His rapid development has seen Bentancur already make his full international debut in Uruguay’s recent World Cup qualifier against Venezuela, while his team-mates at club level have joined the chorus of support too.
“Rodrigo is no surprise to those of us who see him in training every day,” club captain Gigi Buffon told JTV last month. “He may be young but he's very smart and very reliable from a technical, tactical and mental point of view because although he's come from another league he's used to handling lots of pressure. He makes everything he does with the ball look simple. That means Mother Nature has blessed him with something special.”
That is unquestionably true, and it shows that perhaps those summer fears over a lack of new arrivals were misplaced. Juventus don’t have a problem in midfield, they have Rodrigo Bentancur.
