For 75 minutes at Juventus Stadium, AC Milan were arguably the better side. They had got back on level terms after falling behind, they had seen a vicious long range shot from Hakan Calhanoglu hit the bar, and to a man they had played to their highest possible standard. Somewhat inevitably however, the Bianconeri eventually overwhelmed them and proved once again, as Sunday’s edition of La Gazzetta dello Sport proclaimed, there is simply “too much Juve for everyone!”
At first glance, it is easy to look at the second half and think that Max Allegri simply out-coached his opposite number Gennaro Gattuso and the inexperienced Rossoneri boss had no answers. Such is the depth and tactical intelligence within the Old Lady’s squad that they shifted effortlessly from 3-5-2 to 4-3-3, then 4-2-3-1 and back to 4-3-3 by making just a single substitution each time. That they sent on Douglas Costa, Juan Cuadrado and Rodrigo Bentancur – three men who will all be starting games at the World Cup – as replacements only compounded the quality of those changes, but in all honesty, what could Gattuso (or indeed anyone else) actually do as a response?
His own group of players contains obvious quality, but no team in Serie A can goes as deep as the Bianconeri and no manager possesses the variety and acumen to overcome that gulf. Cuadrado, in his first match back from a lengthy injury layoff, was particularly decisive. He nodded in his side’s crucial second goal to break Milan’s resistance, providing width, pace and an outlet on the right flank. “He amazed me, in a good way,” Allegri told Mediaset Premium immediately after the final whistle. “In the past he would sometimes struggle coming off the bench, but he made an immediate impact.”
That is undeniably true, but while the Coach and his substitutes deserve credit for their contributions, Juve will know their victory also owed a lot to Paulo Dybala too. The 24-year-old had not been called up by Argentina during the recent international break, with those closest to him hoping the omission would spark a positive reaction. “Maybe he wanted to motivate him?” pondered team-mate Andrea Barzagli when asked about Jorge Sampaoli’s selections, while Gonzalo Higuain urged his compatriot to “stay strong” and prove his worth.
Paulo Dybala with a beauty for Juventus against Milan...Football Italia style 🇮🇹👌
As if to answer them all, Dybala’s performance against Milan on Saturday was a perfect snapshot of his skill, drive and overall quality, exerting his influence throughout the match and delivering when his team needed him most. The game was just seven minutes old when he collected a pass from Miralem Pjanić fully 20 meters from goal, but the defence stood off him and allowed La Joya far too much time to pick his spot.
He unleashed a low, powerful shot that Gianluigi Donnarumma had no chance of stopping, the goalkeeper beaten comfortably as the ball slammed into the back of the net. While Milan then came back into the contest, Dybala caused them problems throughout, his ability to draw fouls and constant movement never allowing the Rossoneri backline to rest and the statistics serve to highlight the depth of his impact.
As the graphic in the tweet below shows, the No.10 popped up all over the pitch, running at defenders and finding his team-mates in dangerous positions. Connecting with 17 of 21 passes in the attacking third, his clever reverse ball to an on-rushing Sami Khedira handed the German midfielder his goal and put the Bianconeri 3-1 ahead.
He was undoubtedly helped by the introduction of Costa and Cuadrado, their presence on the flanks stretching Milan out across the pitch but it was Dybala’s work in exploiting the extra space that truly made the difference. Asked about Sampaoli’s choice to leave him out of the games with Italy and Spain, Allegri – perhaps in hope of fuelling the fire within his star man – issued a call to action.
“Paulo can go to the World Cup if he has a great end to the season with us,” the Juve boss said at Friday’s pre-match press conference. “Now the most beautiful matches are coming, those where the strongest are exalted.” With a Champions League quarterfinal against Real Madrid looming large on the horizon, Dybala was clearly paying attention but the Bianconeri will need even more from him in the coming weeks.
If Juventus are to avoid a repeat of the 4-1 rout handed to them in last year’s final by Los Merengues, they will need their smiling assassin to deliver once again. Much like the manner in which they eliminated Barcelona at this stage in 2016/17, the only way they can beat Cristiano Ronaldo and co. is with Paulo Dybala at his very best. Milan were merely the appetiser.
