Can Juventus Take Off Handbrake Before Serie A’s Winter Break?

Can Juventus Take Off Handbrake Before Serie A’s Winter Break?
13:55, 12 Dec 2017

Having won six consecutive Serie A titles and reached two of the last three Champions League finals, Juventus could certainly not be accused of resting on their laurels this past summer. Of course, the major acquisitions made by the club were balanced against the departures of Leonardo Bonucci and Dani Alves, yet it is noteworthy that such a dominant team still saw the need to spend almost €150 million on new players.

That investment was largely made on six proven talents, director general Beppe Marotta bringing Federico Bernardeschi, Douglas Costa, Mattia De Sciglio, Benedikt Höwedes, Blaise Matuidi and Wojciech Szczęsny to Turin. In doing so, he provided Max Allegri with a squad both deep enough to cover even the worst possible injury crisis and flexible enough to be deployed in almost any formation imaginable.

The Coach has certainly tested each of those attributes. Paulo Dybala is the only player to have featured in all 16 league games thus far for the Bianconeri – with four of his appearances coming from the bench – while Allegri has also already alternated between 4-3-3, 3-5-2, 4-4-2 and 3-4-2-1. That has led to many accusing the Tuscan of not knowing his best lineup, to which the counterargument would be that he has only used one formation (4-2-3-1) in the Champions League, with no fewer than 12 players featuring in at least four of Juve’s six group stage games.

Allegri’s ability to tailor his approach to a specific opponent was seriously tested this past week, the Old Lady taking on title rivals Napoli and Inter, while also facing Olympiacos in a clash that had to be won in order to guarantee progress to the knockout stages of Europe’s elite competition. On the surface, the Coach did remarkably well, taking victory against the Greek champions and Napoli while holding table-topping Inter to a scoreless draw.

The Bianconeri were unfortunate not to win against their bitter Milanese rivals too, Mario Mandžukić guilty of wasting two or three good chances to put them ahead while Inter were prevented from creating any real opportunities at the other end. Yet the fact the Croatian was in the starting XI to begin with prompted much debate, Allegri opting for the defensive solidity he and Juan Cuadrado provide rather than the attacking flair of Dybala, Costa or Bernardeschi.

It was undoubtedly the smart tactical move, as was the Coach’s decision to have Costa and Dybala negate the influence of Lorenzo Insigne and Jorginho at the San Paolo a week earlier. Yet while iconic Italian journalist Gianni Brera famously insisted that “the perfect game would finish 0-0,” it has been hard not to be disappointed by Juve’s failure to improve their attacking approach so far this term.

Yes, their 41 goals mean they remain Serie A’s highest-scoring team, but that tally is skewed massively by the ten times they found the net against dire Udinese and SPAL sides back in October. It was further helped by Inter, Napoli and Roma all failing to score this past weekend and anyone who has watched Juventus regularly this season is aware that the team has stalled and been almost completely devoid of creativity throughout the first few months of 2017/18.

Some of that has been down to Allegri’s tactical demands. Having Dybala shadow Jorginho limited the Napoli star’s ability to influence play, but it also pushed him deep into midfield, a decision which left the Bianconeri with few options whenever they did push forward. That does not excuse some of the 24-year-old’s other ineffective displays, however, and Juve certainly need him to step up and dominate as he did in the early weeks as soon as possible.

A desperate and unquestionably intelligent desire to stop Inter’s supply to Mauro Icardi saw Inter – who average a Serie A high 25 crosses per game – worked well too. The Nerazzurri managed just one such pass at Juventus Stadium, yet it also meant that Gonzalo Higuain received virtually no service throughout the clash.

The Coach is also guilty of picking starting lineups that cause problems, with the inclusion of Sami Khedira in a two-man midfield arguably foremost among them. The German international simply moves the ball too slowly, preventing promising attacks from bearing fruit all too often, while the likes of Matuidi and Claudio Marchisio look much sharper next to Miralem Pjanić.

However, because Italian football has pushed its Winter Break back so it now begins on January 7 rather than before Christmas, the Old Lady still has five games to play before she is able to take some time off. That provides both the players and Coach with a spell in which they can find their best form. Only one match – at home against AS Roma – could be classed as difficult, the others pitting them against Bologna, Genoa, Hellas Verona and Cagliari, all teams who should be despatched with relative ease.

With a Champions League last-16 clash against Tottenham awaiting in February, now is the time for Allegri to find the magic formula he has proven so adept at uncovering in recent years. Back in 2014/15, a switch to 4-3-2-1 caught opponents off guard and launched Alvaro Morata on a path to stardom, while last season’s 4-2-3-1 formation unlocked the potential of a side who would go on to make history.

Now that same chance awaits. It’s time to stop with the rotation, time to stop asking Dybala, Costa and co to become auxiliary full-backs. Juventus must finally take off the handbrake and show just what they are capable of.

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