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A Few Thoughts on Sebastian Giovinco

By On May 15, 2012 In Commentary With 2 Comments Permanent Link to A Few Thoughts on Sebastian GiovincoPermalink

Here's the little guy dazzling against Inter

So, lately I’ve been doing lots of thinking about the upcoming mercato. Juventus have been linked with various strikers and other players all season long, and most of it is probably BS. However, there is one small man who has lit Serie A up this season, and who is co-owned by Juventus. I’m talking about Sebastian Giovinco, whose possible future transfer to Juventus is becoming a topic of debate amongst Juventini.

I should start by linking to Ogo Sylla’s fantastic piece on Giovinco for ForzaItalianFootball.com, since it provides a good summary of Giovinco’s style of play. Basically, he plays best at Parma as a second striker who likes to drift out to the wings when he needs space. Additionally, he’s most comfortable when on the counter-attack, moving the ball upfield quickly and dribbling around out of position defenders.

That last bit sounds much like Milos Krasic, a player who has been frozen out of Conte’s side due to his unsuitability. However, Giovinco offers a bit more versatility than Krasic, and he could fit in Conte’s system as a second striker, with (in Juve’s sake) Vucinic or Pepe feeding him the ball. I also have a sneaking suspicion he could form an effective partnership with Marco Borriello at the front of a 3-5-2.

His possible tactical fit in this current Juventus is murky, but there is one thing I wanted to point out.

Against the provinciale, the sides who Juventus have drawn time and time again this year, Giovinco was pretty damn effective. Against Genoa, Cagliari, Bologna, and Chievo Verona, the teams who Juve have continuously struggled with this year, Giovinco was especially deadly.

He scored three goals against Chievo this season, one in Parma’s February 2-1 victory over Chievo (in a match where the Atomic Ant also had three “key passes” out of only 16 passes in total), and two in the first match between the two sides in September. Parma would win that match 2-1 as well, although Giovinco would eventually be sent off for accruing two yellow cards. Still, he scored a brace, drew five fouls, and had three shots on target.

His record against those other sides is similar. Some goals, a few key passes in every match, and always some threatening on target shots. The thing that I found most interesting about Giovinco was how, even if he only made 15-20 passes in one match, he would always complete several key passes. Juventus have often had no problem creating space and moving the ball in the first 2/3rds of the ptich, but time and time again in the final third they have struggled to get that last critical pass in to their strikers. Giovinco could provide exactly that service. Plus, he can drift wide to meet the fullbacks, who often bring the ball up.

...and in happier times, with Juve

He’s also played well against bigger sides (most notably when he scored one goal against Inter and assisted two further goals), but I wanted to focus specifically on his work against the provinciale. I’m not sure Giovinco could mix in with Conte’s possession based tactics, as he currently is thriving in a quick, counter-attacking tactic, but he certainly has some specific skills that Juventus have been lacking at times.

When I began researching this post, I was pretty much totally in favor of bringing Giovinco in. Now, I appreciate his talent and wish him well, but I think perhaps he could be best utilized as a piece of leverage when trying to buy another striker, as Juventus still own half of Giovinco.

Parma have made it clear that they want big bucks to part with the little guy, but there’s nothing stopping Juventus from swapping their half of Gio plus cash for another striker…..like Edinson Cavani.

We’ll have to wait for this mercato to unfold (and deal with tons of BS rumors and “news”) and see what happens.

Juventus 3 – Atalanta 1: Hello Scudetto, Goodbye Del Piero

By On May 13, 2012 In Match Reviews With 1 Comment Permanent Link to Juventus 3 – Atalanta 1: Hello Scudetto, Goodbye Del PieroPermalink

Today has been rather eventful and confusing. On the one hand, Juventus has now officially lifted her 30th Scudetto, as you can see in the above picture. Juve also recorded a 3-1 victory over Atalanta, with an impressive goal scored by young midfielder Luca Marrone, and of course a fitting final goal from Alessandro Del Piero. However, it was also Del Piero’s final Serie A game (and final game at Juventus Stadium) with the Bianconeri.

It’s just surreal to even write this, but Del Piero is leaving. After 19 years, almost 300 goals, various championships and fair shares of both joy and heartbreak, perhaps the most talented man to wear the Black and White is leaving. At the very least, we can take solace in the fact that he is leaving as a champion, having completed the task of helping the Old Lady back to her feet after the calamitous effects of Calciopoli and the following few years.

Juve lined up in a 4-3-3 today, with Estigarribia and Lichtsteiner as fullbacks. Chiellini and Bonucci were the CBs, the middle three consisted of Pirlo, Padoin, and Luca Marrone. Finally, up top there was Marco Borriello, Emanuele Giaccherini, and the legend Del Piero.

Del Piero started the match today, although he would soon go down hurt. He would be ok, and would continue to play, but it definitely altered his played for a few moments. He broke out of the ‘injury’ shell with a fine through ball to the big man Marco Borriello, who took the shot but couldn’t get it quite right and sent it over the crossbar.

An interesting note about Borriello: While all the players had their children and wives there today, Borriello had his harem of ladies and all of his love children filling up an entire seating section.

I jest. Now let’s get back on topic.

Borriello, eager to impress his legions of children, made up for his previous error by doing very well to keep possession in the box while under pressure. He made a run through three or four defenders, and though his possession seemed quite precarious at times, he held on. Then, he slipped the ball to Luca Marrone, who sniped in a shot that beat the keeper to the far post. It was Juve’s first goal of the day, and it was also Luca’s first goal for Juventus.

Luca’s debut goal would soon be overshadowed by a more meaningful goal from Il Capitano. He received the ball at the outer edge of the 18 yard box, got his footing right, and then sent it through two defenders’ legs and into the bottom left corner of the goal. It was magical, and it seemed straight out of Hollywood. The entire starting eleven, even Storari in goal, came over to congratulate Ale.

So Juve had a 2-0 lead, but they almost let Atalanta score a few times in the first half. Giacomo Bonaventura had a very close effort almost right after Del Piero scored, and then after that German Denis blew another close chance. Luckily Juventus were able to hold on to the lead until half-time.

In the second half, things got a bit weird. The tempo of the match completely slowed, and then Del Piero came off for Simone Pepe. As anyone would have expected, there was a large outpouring of emotional support for Del Piero. He received a large and lasting standing ovation, and then took several laps around the pitch saying goodbye to the Tifosi. At this point, the match became a side attraction to the Del Piero Show. Fans were crying, throwing him their scarves, and continuing that standing ovation. For his part, Del Piero gave plenty of waves and even shed a few tears at one point.

But there was still football to be played. The fans were reminded this when Bonaventura almost scored again, this time only the post kept him from the goal. Then, Fabio Quagliarella came on for Estigarribia.

Now comes another weird moment. Atalanta were pressuring Juve, in Juve’s own box, and then an Atalanta cross got deflected into the goal by Stephan Lichtsteiner. I was not expecting an error like that from the Swiss defender, but I guess he went this whole season without many errors so he’s allowed just the one.

That was Juve’s third overall goal of the match, but the third goal that COUNTED for Juve would come seven minutes later.

Giorgio Chiellini went down with what we know now was a muscle strain in his groin. It looked bad, and he was sobbing as he hobbled off, but Conte has said that it is not too severe. Giorgio will miss the Coppa Italia final against Napoli, but he should be fine for the Euro 2012 tournament. Forza Azzuri.

Andrea Barzagli came on for Chiellini, and he would be the third goal scorer. In the dying moments of the match, Juventus were awarded a penalty, finally putting to bed any complaints Conte could have made about this season’s officiating. The players agreed that Barzagli (who hadn’t scored all season) should take it. Of course, Barza converted that penalty and Juve had a 3-1 lead. That made him the 20th different Juve player to score this season, a testament to the team’s strength.

Then the match ended, and the trophy presentation began. The players came out by number, except for Del Piero who came at the end, after even Conte. And then, finally, after 6 painful years, Del Piero once again lifted that trophy. The relief on his face was visible, and it was a feeling shared by all Juventini worldwide.

It’s just too bad that the next feeling was absolute dread, as Del Piero’s Juventus tenure comes to an end. Grazie Del Piero, we love you.

Marotta’s “Avengers”

By On May 12, 2012 In Uncategorized With 3 Comments Permanent Link to Marotta’s “Avengers”Permalink

   

 

    One of my favorite saying is “It’s always darkest before the dawn”; most of the time when you are having a difficult period things appear the bleakest right before they improve. This saying certainly applied to Juve in the last two years. Let me take you back to September 1st 2011 when the team was coming off two consecutive seventh place finishes in Serie A. Beppe Marotta had just completed his second summer transfer period as Juventus general manager. After spending the summer chasing top players like Aguero, Giuseppe Rossi and Tevez as well as trying to sell Amauri, Felipe Melo (who was finally moved on a loan deal) and Iaquinta with no successs Marotta was as popular on Juve fan sites as Tiger Woods at a feminist rally. It appeared that Marotta had much more in common with his predecessor Secco than Luciano Moggi. Many people complained that Marotta was in over his head at a club like Juve, and was only capable of being successful on teams like Sampdoria. Even the most optimistic Juve fan would have settled for a return to the Champions League in 2012 as the best case scenario for the club. Going into the last game of the season, Juve has already clinched the scudetto and is still undefeated.

 

While most fans and journalists are mainly praising Conte for the remarkable turnaround for the team, it is important to acknowledge Marotta’s contributions. In his first calendar year as Juve GM back in 2011 Marotta spent approximately 30 million euros on Krasic, Martinez and Motta- three players that have contributed nothing to this season’s scudetto. However for the same amount of money in 2012 Marotta was able to acquire Bzrzagli, Pirlo, Vidal and Vucinic- four of Juve’s best players this season (Marchisio and Chiellini being the other standouts). In 2012 Marotta also acquired Lichsteiner and Matri, who both made strong contributions particularly in the first half of the season.

 

The only person that has assembled a better team in 2012 is Nick Fury, the leader of the Avengers. I am sure many of you have seen the movie by now since it is racking in more money than Floyd Mayweather. Here is a clip from the film:

 

 

 

 

There are some interesting parallels between the 4 major characters in the movie and Marotta’s main acquisitions in 2012:

 

 

Barzagli as “Captain America”, AKA Steve Rogers. Both of them have no real physical super power, but they are excellent tactician and field commanders with their teammates frequently deferring to their orders in battle. Captain America mainly uses his shield as a weapon, just like Juve’s defense carried the team before the offense exploded in late March. Barzagli (who was a backup to Cannavaro and Materazzi in the 2006 World Cup) was acquired in January of 2012 from Wolfsbrug after he lost his starting job. Barzagli’s price tag was approximately a tenth of the cost of the Motta acquisition. Barzagli was arguably the best defender in all of Serie A this season (he reminded me of Scirea quite a bit) and since he just recently turned 31 he should be counted on for years to come. In the past two years Marotta has also purchased Lichsteiner, Bonucci and Caceres. With Chiellini returning to his form of 2009 and DeCeglie’s vast improvement Juve has its best defense since 2004 when the team featured Cannavaro, Thuram, Montero and Zambrotta.

 

 

 

 Pirlo as Iron Man, AKA Tony Stark. Just like Tony Stark Andrea Pirlo comes from a wealthy industrialist family, and he is an inventive genius that likes to be flashy. I was cautiously optimistic when Juve signed Pirlo, but there was no way I would have predicted he was going to be Juve’s Iron Man by playing the most minutes this season. While it is easy to rip Milan for letting Pirlo go I seriously doubt he would have played as well had he resigned with the club. In his last two season at Milan, Pirlo spent many games wandering aimlessly in the midfield and while in retrospect it seems insane that Allegri and Galliani preferred Van Bommel and Ambrosini to Pirlo, many Milan fans were not distraught to see Pirlo leave the club. However since joining Juve, Pirlo has been as rejuvenated as Roger Sterling has been on Mad Men since trying LSD for the first time. Pirlo is only the 6th player to win the scudetto back to back with two different teams, the last player to do so was Roberto Baggio who left Juve to join Milan.

 

 

 

Vucinic as the Incredible Hulk, AKA Bruce Banner. Just like Vucinic the Incredible Hulk struggles between the two sides of himself- the dark and the light. This character is reserved and withdrawn when he is Bruce Banner, but is also raging and destructive when he takes the form of the Hulk. Just like his fellow countryman Savicevic and former Juve player Boniek, Mirko can be maddening to fans. At times he appears like an absolute world class striker who can completely take over games by crushing the opposition (Vucinic was simply awesome versus Fiorentina and Roma this spring), but other times you would be hard pressed to notice him on the field. While Conte rotated starts between Matri, Quagliarella and Borriello he kept Vucinic in the starting lineup all season, even after a disastrous stretch of games for Mirko in February. Vucinic rewarded Conte’s faith in him by leading the club during the eight game win streak that put Juve on top of the standings for good. If Marotta can land a top “prima punta” like Cavani or Higuain Vucinic could be the Hulk rather than Bruce Banner more consistently.

 

 

 

Vidal as Thor. After having a sensational first season at Juve we can all understand why Rumenigge was so furious Juve supposedly stole Vidal from Bayern Munich (and imagine how amazing that club would be today had they landed Vidal). Just like Thor, Vidal is a superb hand to hand warrior, who is known for having superior strength and an endurance only matched by Borriello in the bedroom. Other than during a subpar stretch in February and early March, Vidal was incredibly consistent and versatile this season. He even played center back in a key game versus Genoa when Bonucci was suspended and both Barzagli and Chiellini were hurt. While many have compared Vidal to Edgar Davids, another former Juve midfield warrior, he is actually much more similar to Conte, who scored an impressive 44 goals as a player for Juve in 419 games and was also known for his ability to regain possession from the opposing team. Vidal cost Juve 12 million Euros, after his sensational first season at the club his value has at least doubled.

 

 

Marotta has finally rebuilt Juve’s roster with numerous moves in the past 2 years, this summer he should focus more on quality. Now that the club has returned to the Champions League stage it should be easier for Marotta to acquire a top striker of the caliber of Cavani, Van Persie, Higuain or Suarez. Marotta has also struggled in the past to sell off players; this summer he will have to maximize the returns on former big names like Felipe Melo, Krasic and Elia as well as transfer busts like Martinez. Should Marotta be able to achieve both of these goals he will be able to be make Juve as successful a franchise as the Avengers.

 

 

 

Follow me on Twitter @DavidAmoyal

 

 

 

Juventus 2 – Cagliari 0: Scudetto #30, Courtesy of Conte and the Boys

By On May 7, 2012 In Match Reviews With No Comments Permanent Link to Juventus 2 – Cagliari 0: Scudetto #30, Courtesy of Conte and the BoysPermalink

It’s been six long years. Six years of waiting for Juventus to throw off the shackles of Farsopoli, waiting while we watched Inter win multiple Scudetti and Milan’s European triumphs. We’d been through a lot, through Serie B, to the terrible transfer policy of one Alessio Secco. Perhaps the darkest hour came in the winter of 2009/2010. Club legend (and then brand new coach) Ciro Ferrera did manage to lead his Juve side to an emotionally charged victory over Inter in December, but but January the team was sinking without a trace. A draw was considered a good result at that time. The team struggled for the rest of the season under replacement Alberto Zaccheroni (who coincidentally used a three man backline), before finishing 7th place and just barely making it into the Europa League qualifiers.

Last season, we were teased with the early play of Milos Krasic and Gigi Delneri’s unbeaten streak towards the end of the year. Lead scorer Fabio Quagliarella went down, and with him so did Juve’s season. Juve’s form dipped catastrophically, hitting rock bottom after a 2-0 loss to Lecce where Gigi Buffon was red carded early on in the match. Again, the team struggled in their fight for European football and fell short, finishing in 7th and not qualifying for the Europa League.

There were some positives last year. Milos Krasic at times looked like a phenom, we picked up Andrea Barzagli and Alessandro Matri, and of course pre-injury Fabio Quagliarella was on fire. But these positives were not enough to overpower the negativity and darkness of last season.

Gigi Delneri’s tenure was ended, and a new coach was brought in. Antonio Conte, the former Capitano himself, had returned to his dear Old Lady. Conte had experience coaching at Arezzo, Siena, Atalanta, and Bari. Some people had their doubts about whether or not Conte could deliver in Serie A. He’d brought Siena and Bari to Serie A from Serie B, but his only actual experience in Serie A came with Atalanta and ended with Conte resigning and the ultras hating him.

Any doubts that were had would eventually be proved wrong. Conte, along with Beppe Marotta, molded a team in his image. Hard working, tireless, aggressive, but most importantly, they were winners. This team, like Conte, did not go down. This was shown in the Great Neapolitan Miracle of 2011, when Juventus came back from a 3-1 HT deficit to tie the match 3-3.

This resilience was shown again yesterday. After blowing their three point lead over Milan after a rare error from Gigi Buffon, Juventus were very much at risk of losing the first place spot. A.C. Milan had to get through Inter (and they wouldn’t, losing 4-2) still, but Juventus had to recover from a serious error that could have derailed their momentum.

Conte and his squad went out ready for a win. De Ceglie was out, so Conte opted for the 3-5-2. The traditional backline was in effect, and Pepe and Lichtsteiner were playing as the wingbacks. The midfield was the usual three, and the two strikers were Alessandro Matri and Mirko Vucinic.

As against Lecce, Juventus scored their first goal rather early. Six minutes in, Leonardo Bonucci played a longball to Vucinic, and Mirko slid the ball in between the goalkeeper’s legs for Juve’s (eventual) Scudetto clinching goal.

Bonucci would later send a similarly brilliant longball to Marchisio, but this time three Cagliari defenders mobbed the midfielder and so nothing came of the scoring chance.

It seems, unfortunately, that Juve took their foot off the gas pedal a bit after the goal. For the rest of the first half they kept most of the possession, but they were not creating too many good scoring chances. Furthermore, their passing was sloppy. This probably had something to do with the on and off heavy rain in Trieste, but it still had an effect on Juve’s game.

It’s worth noting that some of Juve’s best scoring efforts of the first half came from Simone Pepe. He’s known as a hard worker and fighter, but not much of a creative attacker. He had two angled efforts from the wide end of the 18 yard box, but both were either blocked or went out of bounds. Finally, he made an audacious run through Cagliari’s half, skipping past several defenders before getting a shot on goal. Sadly for the Pepster, his shot was blocked by a defender.

There was one terrible moment in the first half, and that had to do with an injury. Stephan Lichtsteiner’s forehead collided with the side of Cagliari forward Mauricio Pinilla’s skull. Lichtsteiner had to be taken off on a stretcher with a neckbrace, but he seemed to be okay and was even celebrating the Scudetto in the locker room later. Martin Caceres would come on for Lichtsteiner to finish the match.

Juventus went into half time with the 1-0 lead, but as we saw against Lecce, a 1-0 lead can be lost very easily. So, having said that, the team needed to be 100% ready to go out and ice the match.

Instead, we got more sloppy passing. There was one moment in particular, early on in the second half, that irked me. Juventus had started a counter attack, and it looked like maybe something would come of it, but it was killed prematurely by a terrible pass from Vidal to Caceres.

Vidal’s play on the whole was a bit poor yesterday, which is odd since he’s been playing exquisitely for months now. Perhaps it was jitters, given his inexperience (then) with winning a Scudetto. Whatever it was, he was subbed off in favor of Emanuele Giaccherini.

Another play who was quite poor yesterday was Alessandro Matri. He’s been struggling lately, to get playing time and then to play effectively. Yesterday, he was out of it for most of the match. He made a few helpful passes, but he didn’t get a single shot off the entire match. He’s a striker, that’s his job. To be fair, there were a few times when he would be released with space but would be called offside. Overall though, it was a very poor match for the handsome striker. Once the match was over, he didn’t care. He just took his pants off and celebrated.

Speaking of handsome strikers, the final substitute was Marco Borriello. The big guy came on for the struggling Matri and managed to make a big impact. Statistically speaking, he only made four passes and had six touches. However, the stats don’t show that he forced an own goal.

The big guy had made his way into Cagliari’s 18 yard box, and defender Michele Canini got ready to close him down. Before that happened, Borriello received a cross. Canini dutifully intercepted the cross……..and deflected it into his own net. 2-0 Juventus.

Though he did not actually score, Borriello celebrated like he did. I guess it certainly was an occasion to celebrate, as Inter were also winning at that point and the Scudetto was all but officially Juve’s.

I do also want to point out that Vucinic almost scored a second goal today, and it was similar to the golden goal he scored against A.C. Milan. From the edge of the box he sent a beautiful curling shot in, but Cagliari keeper Michael Agazzi slapped it away. My god it was a beautiful effort though.

Eventually, after a few chaotic moments where Cagliari held possession in Juve’s half, the match ended. The tifosi who had traveled to Trieste were climbing the fences getting ready to storm the field, and Conte and the bench players were already celebrating before the whistle blew.

Once it blew, there was pandemonium. Martin Caceres, sprinting to the safety of the players tunnel, actually took out one fan. The other players went into the tunnel as well (for a few moments) except for Giorgio Chiellini. He stayed with the ultras, getting stripped down to his underwear by them, and being tossed in the air like a champion often is. The players (and Conte) would eventually come out and join the celebrations, but the fans were really going wild.

And who can blame them? This is one of the sweetest Scudetti in Juve’s history. A new coach (who was already beloved by we Juventini) brought us from the hell of consecutive 7th place finishes, and forever vanquished the ghosts of Farsopoli. Juventus is back. Juventus has the best defense in the world. Juventus is the best club in Italy. Juventus is about to take the Champions League by storm next year.

(But first, they beat Atalanta next week to clinch their status as ‘undefeated’. Then it’s on to Rome for the Coppa Italia final. Juventus may very well do the double.)

Fight for Your Right to Party

By On May 6, 2012 In Uncategorized With 1 Comment Permanent Link to Fight for Your Right to PartyPermalink

   This has been a rather brutal week for many outstanding human beings in the world of sports and entertainment. Last Saturday Derrick Rose, arguably the most humble NBA superstar, tore his knee in the first game of the playoffs. On Wednesday, Gigi Buffon made a terrible mistake that may cost Juventus the scudetto. The following day Mariano Rivera, a legendary pitcher for the New York Yankees tore his knee warming up in the outfield. I realize most reading this article could care less about baseball, but I can assure you Rivera is not only one of the greatest clutch performers in sports history he is also very well known for his charity work in his home country of Panama. This was probably going to be his final season, so to see him end such an amazing career this way is heart breaking (he has however vowed to attempt a comeback). On Friday I also found out that Adam Yauch, better known as MCA, from the Beastie Boys had passed away. He contributed to making rap a mainstream genre in the world of music (the Beastie Boys album “Paul’s Boutique” was ranked #156 in Rolling Stones ranking of best albums of all time for any genre) but also was involved with numerous charitable causes, especially to assist Tibet. Here is a very well written obituary on Adam:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2012/may/05/adam-yauch

Despite all this terrible news, the week can still end on a very high note should Juve finally clinch its first scudetto since the Calciopoli scandal. Juventus is coming off a deflating home draw versus Lecce, but still controls its own destiny since it has a one point lead over Milan with two games to go. The Beastie Boys first major hit (and many believed at the time it would be their only one) was called “Fight for your Right to Party” and the title perfectly sums up what Conte’s boys need to do to get over last Wednesday’s game and clinch the scudetto:

Conte has done an outstanding job this season, but his biggest challenge comes today since he needs to rally his players after the crushing last game. Milan has not been the same this season since the Muntari phantom goal (and it certainly does not help their cause that they have not stopped complaining about it for last 2 months), so Juve must react in a much better way. Other than the first game versus Napoli, when the team was down 2 goals at halftime, Conte and his players have not really faced much adversity so it will be interesting to see how they react when they play Cagliari later this afternoon.

The other key match of the game is Inter-Milan. It is rather ironic that Inter could be the decider of this year’s scudetto since the two teams fighting for it are its two biggest rivals. There is certainly a lot of bad blood between Inter and Juve, but seeing Milan win the scudetto would be even more devastating to Moratti and Inter nation. A goal by Amauri put Juve on top of the standings earlier in the season, so it would be completely fitting for Inter to hand the scudetto to Juve. With so many bad things happening to good people this week, it is time for the Karma Police to intervene and let Juve fans have a sweet moment of celebration after 6 brutal years.

& 

 

 

True Love Waits

By On May 5, 2012 In Uncategorized With 1 Comment Permanent Link to True Love WaitsPermalink

 

  If you are reading this, you are either a Juve fan, a masochistic supporter of Inter (come to think of it is there any other kind?) or a friend of mine I have begged to read my work. If you fall in the first category, you have gone through a rollercoaster ride  of emotions in the last ten days, which can only be compared to being in love with someone as stable as Naomi Campbell or a System of the Down song http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjQM1Bp24Xo . Loving a football team can be almost as exhilarating as spending an evening drinking with Roger Sterling, but can also be as devastating as failing a drug test because you had to take a steroid to combat a sexually transmitted disease (scroll down to #4 in this article http://www.askmen.com/top_10/sports_150/158b_fitness_list.html ). Love makes people make great sacrifices but it can also make people irrational; many times it forces us to be blind to the faults of our loved ones. My favorite U2 ballad is called “Love is Blindness” and it perfectly describes the theme of this column. Check out this version from the ZOO TV tour back in 1993 (Bono was only 33 years old back then and nowhere near being the douche bag he is today).

 

 

 

We have seen many demonstration of love from Juve players to the club in recent years (Tacchinardi on Twitter is a great example) but none bigger than what Buffon and Del Piero did right after winning the World Cup with Italy in 2006. By remaining with the club in the wake of the Calciopoli scandal, and spending a season of their prime in Italy’s second division, they showed loyalty to their team when they had many other options. At the time, Buffon was considered the world’s best goalkeeper after having a stellar World Cup:

 

 

 

Del Piero (only 32 at the time) could have joined Manchester United or Real Madrid, the fact that they both decided to stay made it easier for Juve to also retain Trezeguet, Camoranesi and Nedved. While Juve has certainly not shown Del Piero the same love this season (http://www.juvefc.com/blog/?p=417) the fans have certainly shown a lot of well deserved support to Gigi Buffon after his terrible mistake versus Lecce. Because I love Juve, and these two players in particular, so much I am not sure I would be able to handle it should Juve lose the scudetto because of Gigi’s mistake followed by Del Piero leaving the club.

 

According to the Oxford dictionary the word “fan” is a shortened version of “fanatic” which means “marked by excessive enthusiasm and often intense uncritical devotion” and is derived from the Latin word “fanaticus” meaning “insanely but divinely inspired” (that is why I used the word supporter to describe a follower of Inter in the first paragraph). These definitions, especially the intense uncritical devotion part, explain many of the passionate debates I have had with Juve fans on Twitter and on message boards:

 

Del Piero over Baggio. If you have read any of my previous articles you are aware of how much I love Del Piero. I have followed him since he was 14 when he was playing for my hometown team Padova. The way he has carried himself both on and off the field is beyond reproach, and he is the best example of the famous Stile Juve. While Del Piero certainly has had a longer and better career at Juve than Roberto Baggio, he is not a better overall player than the Divino Codino despite what many Juve fans seem to think (I suspect people that feel this way are under 30). Baggio was ranked as the 16th best player ever by World Soccer magazine and has scored 205 Serie A goals in 452 games, 6th all time despite missing many games to injuries (Del Piero has 187 Serie A goals in 477 games). Baggio and Del Piero have both scored 27 goals for Italy, but Baggio has done so playing in 35 fewer games than Del Piero. Case closed.

 

Marchisio/Chiellini. The biggest silver lining of the year Juve spent in Serie B was being able to develop Marchisio and Chiellini. They are both currently having a very strong season and odds are one of them will be the captain once Buffon retires (hopefully as still a member of Juve). However, they were both very average during the previous two seasons but you would have never known that had you read comments by Juve supporters on most fan sites. I strongly suspect they both lost a lot of confidence during the disastrous 2010 World Cup and needed a stronger coach than the various Ferrara, Zaccheroni and Del Neri. For most of the younger Juve fans it was impossible to admit that Chiellini and Marchisio had regressed. I am glad that Chiellini and Marchisio have made strong returns to form this season, but I still think they are slightly overrated by most of Juve’s younger fans.

 

Inter irrationality. Inter deserves a lot of the negativity it receives from Juve fans. With Fiorentina and Torino, they are Juve’s historical rivals and their role in the Calciopoli scandal made it a Tupac-Notorious BIG like feud between Juve and Inter. Maybe living in the United States for so long has made me overly pragmatic, but if it benefits Juve I am really not opposed to Inter winning games, this idea makes most Juve fans angrier than Mel Gibson. In the past, Inter could have ensured more Serie A teams would qualify to the Champions League by making a deep run in Europe most prestigious tournament. More recently, Inter could give Juve a realistic chance at acquiring Cavani by ensuring Napoli does not qualify for next season’s Champions League yet most Juve fans would have been happier with Inter losing games even if it benefitted Juve in the long run. These same Juve fans have the ultimate test tomorrow, when Inter faces Milan in the next to last Serie A game of the season. I suspect at least in this case we can all root for Inter to win.

 

Trading players. It comes with the territory of being a fan to overrate your team’s players. Most of the time, fans also expect great players from other teams to join Juve without having to give up much in return. Juve is in the market for a top striker this summer now that the team has finally returned to the Champions League stage. To acquire a blue chip striker the club will have to either spend a fortune or include some of its younger players in the deal. Should Inter, Udinese or Lazio get the last spot for next season’s Champions League Napoli will most likely have to sell one between Lavezzi or Cavani (Hamsik just signed an extension). Especially Cavani (who has scored a stunning 49 goals in 69 games for Napoli) would be perfect for Juve. To get him, Juve will most likely have to part with a lot of Exor’s cash as well as a few players. Most Juve fans would not have issues giving up Matri in the deal, but the player most appealing to Napoli would certainly be Bonucci since Napoli has an old and average defense, however very few Juve fans I have spoken to would be okay with this transaction. Bonucci has had a very strong streak of games since his disastrous performance versus Milan, but I would have no issue sacrificing him to get someone of the caliber of Cavani. In general it is much easier (and cheaper) to find a defender than a top striker like Cavani so this deal makes sense to me.

 

 

The past 6 years have tested the love of many fans for Juve. Calciopoli, transfer busts like Amauri and Diego have made it hard to wear the black and white jersey with pride (even harder if you live in the US since people confuse you for a referee) but this season can end with a fantastic triumph that will make these last few years worthwhile. In the words of the great Thom Yorke “True Love Waits”

Juventus – Cagliari Preview

By On May 4, 2012 In Uncategorized With 3 Comments Permanent Link to Juventus – Cagliari PreviewPermalink

It’s all coming down to the final two matchdays. This weekend, as Milan face Inter, Juve have perhaps their best shot at claiming the Scudetto early. If Milan do not win, and Juventus do, Juve are champions. Inter are fighting for the final Champions League spot, plus it’s the Milan derby, so expect a very fierce match.

Meanwhile, the Old Lady faces a Cagliari side that is mathematically safe from relegation. They have ‘nothing’ to play for, and they will not even be playing at their home stadium, as a conflict between club president Massimo Cellino and the city government has forced Cagliari to begin playing their home fixtures in Trieste. One could even argue that this is like a home game for Juve.

Juventus

With Simone Pepe already fighting to recover from injury, Juventus were dealt another injury blow against Lecce. Paolo De Ceglie came off with a thigh strain, and he’s going to be out for the next few weeks, therefore missing the rest of the season and most likely the Coppa Italia final against Napoli as well.

This leaves two options at left back – Giorgio Chiellini or Martin Caceres. Neither can come close to PDC’s offense play on the left flank, but both are proficient defensively.

Now, in the 3-5-2, where the team has two wing backs instead of two full backs, Emanuele Giaccherini and the forgotten Marcelo Estigarribia can slot in. Estigarribia seems like a long shot to me, but it’s a true toss up between Giacca or Caceres in the 3-5-2, or Caceres/Chiellini in the 4-3-3.

Cagliari

The Sardinian side is missing four players due to injuries or suspension, with a fifth (Daniele Dossena) racing to get fit ahead of the match. The injuries hit the defense the hardest, as starting left back Alessandro Agostini’s absence has caused a number of problems. Right back Gabriele Perico may fill Agostini’s role, but to be honest Perico is a rather poor player and could be lit up by Juve’s right flank.

Cagliari’s injury problems have not spread to the strongest part of their side – the midfield. Radja Nainggolan (who Juve are supposedly interested in), Daniele Conti, Albin Ekdal (who is co-owned by Juve), and attacking midfielder Andrea Cossu together pose a fine challenge for Juve’s midfield. If Cagliari are to have any chance of competing with Juve, Cossu will need to shut down Andrea Pirlo, which is no easy task.

Club president Massimo Cellino has been coming after Juventus in the press this week. He has called the club “arrogant” and has said they lack respect. He cites the controversies with the third star and the referees this season as examples of Juve’s “arrogance”.

Those are strong words from a man whose side is just barely safe from relegation.

Final Comment

I have a feeling, given Cagliari’s makeshift fullback situation, that Juve will light up Cagliari. Of course, the Lecce result could have negatively impacted the players, making them feel more stressed and thus leading to more mistakes. I doubt that Antonio Conte would allow such a shift in morale, but the general pressure of the Scudetto race could negatively impact Juve in this one.

Juventus have the better team, and they have much more on the line than Cagliari. So I’m calling a Juve win.

Juventus 1 – Lecce 1: A Shocking Buffon Error Leads to Two Dropped Points

By On May 2, 2012 In Match Reviews With 2 Comments Permanent Link to Juventus 1 – Lecce 1: A Shocking Buffon Error Leads to Two Dropped PointsPermalink

Nobody would have predicted this. Nobody would have predicted that Juventus would allow the Scudetto race to be blown open this late, and nobody predicted that Juve would drop two points based off a huge error from Gianluigi Buffon. That's right, we're starting this thing at the end of the match, when Gigi blew it.

Buffon is our ace, our top keeper. He's either not needed for an entire game, or he's making top notch saves. Today, he was trying to show off his fancy footwork. He managed to sidestep Lecce players a few times, but late in the match he would attempt one sidestep too many. He was promptly tackled by Luis Muriel, and Andrea Bertolacci sent in the equalizing goal. It was a heartbreaking moment, and a shocking error. I'm still not quite  right as I write this, still reeling from that error. Really, there's nothing else to say aside from "Ya blew it." Kapeesh, Gigi? Ya blew it.

Juventus went crazy trying to get a second goal after Lecce equalized, but there was simply not enough time in the match. Their lackluster effort in the second half came back to haunt them, as all the missed chances became that much more important.

While Juve blew the game in the second half, they fought off a tough Lecce side in the first half. The match started at a very high tempo, and Lecce were not giving Juve any breathing room in midfield. They were pushing high up in defense, forcing Juve out of their preferred cocoon of possession in their opponent's half. Instead, Juve often had to shuffle the ball around between their back three and look for space to open up.

This is not to say that Juve's offense was completely dead for the first half. On the contrary, they made several dangerous chances. Only one was converted, when Claudio Marchisio headed in the ball off of a beautiful chip pass from Andrea Pirlo. Claudio had several missed chances on Sunday against Novara, so consider this his payback for all those misses.

Speaking of misses, boy was the team bad at finishing in the second half. Arturo Vidal, Fabio Quagliarella, and Alessandro Matri (who replaced Quagliarella) all missed at least one juicy scoring chance. Meanwhile, Lecce played with ten men for over 30 minutes, as wide midfielder Juan Guillermo Cuadrado was sent off in the 54th minute. The one man advantage was still not enough to enable Juve's scoring, and to be honest they were rather poor in attack during the second half.

Aside from Matri, the the other second half substitute was Alessandro Del Piero. Even Il Capitano couldn't get anything going, and he struggled to make an impact.

That only adds up to two substitutes, but that's because Conte had to use one in the first half. Only five minutes into the game, Paolo De Ceglie had to come off after injuring his hamstring. Martin Caceres was put in for PDC, but his touch was poor all night and he didn't do well when receiving balls in Lecce's final third.

Hopefully De Ceglie is ok, and thankfully Juve are still in first place by one point. If Juve win out, the Scudetto is theirs. If Milan lose or draw on Sunday against Inter, and Juve win, then Juve win the Scudetto. Otherwise, if both teams win, this baby is going down to the wire.

No ratings today, I'm too distraught. Instead, here's a song. Praise Conte, and Forza Juve.

Juventus – Lecce Preview: The Final Step to the Scudetto?

By On May 1, 2012 In Previews With No Comments Permanent Link to Juventus – Lecce Preview: The Final Step to the Scudetto?Permalink

This is officially the home stretch. Tomorrow’s match against Lecce is the third final match of the season. After that, there’s a match against Cagliari this weekend, and the season finale against Atalanta next weekend. A Juve win coupled with a Milan loss tomorrow seals the Old Lady’s 30th (yes, 30th) Scudetto. Otherwise, assuming Milan beat Atalanta tomorrow, Juventus would seal the Scudetto with a win this weekend against Cagliari, regardless of Milan’s result.

Tomorrow’s fixture also holds some personal meaning for Conte. He was born in Lecce came up in Lecce’s youth system, before moving on to make almost 90 appearances for the senior side. He of course left Lecce for Juve in 1991 and embarked on a long playing and now managerial career. Conte’s move to Juve in the ’90s was not nearly as controversial as his decision several years ago to take the position of head coach at Bari, Lecce’s hated rivals. That move cemented some Lecce fans’ hatred for Il Mister, but that hatred has done little to stop Conte’s meteoric rise to the head of the managerial world.

Juventus

Juve are still missing Simone Pepe, who is out once again with a twisted ankle. Eljero Elia, who made his most significant appearnace of the season last week, is once again in Conte’s squad for the match, so he could perhaps play again. Alessandro Matri is returning from his one match suspension, so he may start up top.

Of course, Matri’s chances for selection drop precipitously if Conte employs the 3-5-2. And he most likely will, as Lecce also use a 3-5-2 and Conte loves to mirror the three man back line. Although having said that I do think Conte also has trouble picking two starting centerbacks, and thus chooses the 3-5-2 to avoid that choice.

This also brings into question the starter at left wing back. Paolo De Ceglie is unquestionably the deserved starter, but Conte may want to rest him for this weekend’s match. For some reason, Marcelo Estigarribia has sometimes been played there, although we could also see Emanuele Giaccherini playing at left wing back as well. The opposite wing could see Martin Caceres starting, it depends on whether Conte chooses to rest Stephan Lichtsteiner or to take advantage of his good form.

The 3-5-2 makes me think that Marco Borriello may start, especially given his recent goal scoring ‘streak’. We know that Mirko Vucinic will be starting, and so I would say that second spot is up between Borriello and Quagliarella. However, don’t be surprised if Del Piero makes a start, as he’s overdue for one. If Del Piero starts though, he definitely will not finish the match.

Lecce

Lecce are fighting for Serie A survival. They fill the third and final relegation spot, and they are just one point behind Genoa. They had a burst of strong form a few weeks ago, with consecutive victories over Roma and Catania followed by a 1-1 draw against Lazio. Since then though, they’ve lost their last two matches, to Napoli and Parma.

Tactially, Lecce are exactly the type of team that can upset Juve. In fact last time around Juventus barely clawed their way to a 1-0 victory. They are quick on the counter-attack, and will surely not allow Juve to win as easily as they have in some recent matches. Plus, they are unlikely to allow Andrea Pirlo to reign free in the midfield as Novara did this weekend. We also cannot underestimate the relegation battle factor, as Lecce are probably as desperate to stay up as Juve is to win the Scudetto.

Former Torino striker David Di Michele, Lecce’s leading scorer with 11 goals, is the biggest threat to Juve’s backline. He’s a pretty good finisher, although as he has aged he has lost some pace. He leads what is by far the best offense for a relegation threatened side, with no team in the bottom five (aside from Genoa) coming close to Lecce’s 39 goals scored.

Final Comment

This match should be Juve’s final big hurdle for the Scudetto. A win, and they are 99% champions. Of course, they still need to earn that final 1% against Cagliari and Atalanta, and a 99% champion is really no champion at all. While Lecce are the type of team who could shock Juve, they are also playing at Juventus Stadium, so an upset is unlikely.

I predict a Juventus victory, and I hope for a Milan loss. Because you know what that means…..

Juventus 4 – Novara 0: Big Game Mirko Visits the Piedmont Derby

By On April 29, 2012 In Match Reviews With No Comments Permanent Link to Juventus 4 – Novara 0: Big Game Mirko Visits the Piedmont DerbyPermalink

In my preview for this match, I was a bit weary of a possible Novara upset. Well, per usual, my fears were displaced. Juventus came out today and shoved their game down Novara’s throats.

While my fears were displaced, my hypothesizing about Juve’s formation was not. Juve did indeed line up in a 3-5-2, with Giaccherini and Lichtsteiner as wingbacks, and Mirko Vucinic and Marco Borriello up top. The usual midfield and centerback trios started as well.

The first half was textbook Juve domination. Borriello almost opened the scoring immediately, as he was through on goal with the ball after a Vucinic forward pass. Unfortunately, Borriello’s effort went across the face of goal. This early effort served as a warning shot to Novara.

Moments later, the warning shot turned into full fledged firing. Andrea Pirlo was fouled outside of the 18 yard box, and Juventus were awarded a free kick. Pirlo took the kick, sending it low to Vucinic who was by the edge of the box. Vucinic almost reflexively flicked the ball towards goal and it sailed into the top corner. 1-0 Juventus.

Marchisio almost doubled Juve’s score with a double dose of shots on goal. His first effort was saved by Novara’s keeper, Alberto Maria Fontana. That play led to a throw-in for Juve, and this went straight to Marchisio who was in front of goal. Claudio’s point blank effort was sent over the bar. Sorry, Principino,

It would take a man much taller than Marchisio to score Juve’s second goal. It would take….Marco Borriello. The most polarizing non-Vucinic member of the Juve squad scored his second goal of the season today, with a diving header assisted by Giaccherini. Moments before halftime Juventus had iced the game, but they weren’t finished yet.

The first half was a tad even, with Novara getting a few chances to move the ball around and create attacks. They showed some attacking ability, but eventually they were overwhelmed by the Juventus midfield. Additionally, Novara barely even attempted to bother Pirlo. He was given free reign to conduct Juve’s offense.

The second half started much like the first half: Marco Borriello’s close range effort on goal missed. Still, it only took five minutes for Juventus to reconvene the scoring. Vucinic had a shot blocked by Fontana, who didn’t collect the rebound. Arturo Vidal pounced on the ball, and slid it into the net for Juve’s third goal.

Soon after his goal, Vidal was subbed off for Simone Padoin. This marked the beginning of Conte’s “substitution” period, which he seems to prefer doing in clusters. After Padoin came on, Paolo De Ceglie was brought on for Claudio Marchisio.

There was one brief intermission in Conte’s substitution dance, and it was for a goal. Emanuele Giaccherini had an shot on goal from the left side, and it was blocked and the rebound traveled away from goal. Just like Vidal, Vucinic was quick to collect the rebound and slot it in for Juve’s fourth and final goal.

Immediately after that goal, the rarely spotted Eljero Elia was brought on for Vucinic. It was Elia’s first appearance in quite some time, and also one of his longest.

Elia took up Vucinic’s role, but he was nowhere near the creator that Mirko is. The young Dutchman had four shots in total, but only two were on target, and he wasted a few pristine scoring chances. Considering how little Elia has played this year, it wasn’t an entirely bad performance. However, it wasn’t the kind of performance that convinces a club not to sell a player either. We’ll see what happens with Eljero over the summer.

Novara also had a few chances late in the match. Sergio Floccari had a wicked header that was cleared by Chiellini just in front of goal. Later on, Simone Pesce’s shot was saved by Gigi Buffon, but he fumbled the save and almost made a terrible error. In the grand scheme it would not have mattered, as Juve were already leading 4-0. It doesn’t matter anyway, as Buffon quickly collected the fumbled ball and ended the danger.

It was another fantastic performance from Conte’s well-oiled Juventus machine. Let’s see how the players did individually.

Ratings

Buffon: 6. He was not tested very often, but his fumble could have led to a goal. He dealt with all other trouble easily, but he shouldn’t be fumbling saves when he only has to make a few per match.

Bonucci: 6. Overall, he was not bad. However, Leo’s first half was reminiscent of the Bonucci from the first three months of 2012. He made up for it in the second half, and had a few important stops.

Barzagli: 6.5. Brick Wall Barzagli made a few key interceptions today. Nothing else to note from a solid performance.

Chiellini: 6.5. Like Barzagli, Chiellini was solid in defense. He was not so effective moving forward, but he did show off his touch (or lack thereof) a few times with some dribbling attempts. Also had a cool looking bicycle kick in Novara’s 18 yard box, albeit it after the ball had already trailed out.

Lichtsteiner: 7. Lichty’s been a bit mediocre lately, but today he was superb. His defending was good, but that’s never been his problem. His recent mediocrity came when moving forward, but today he was quite exceptional on the right flank.

Giaccherini: 6.5. Our resident small man found himself with tons of space at the beginning of the match. His attempts at penetrating were unsuccessful at first, but he soon found other ways to pitch in. He had a few scoring attempts, but none were successful. Of course, he assisted Borriello’s diving header.

Pirlo: 8. Novara gave Pirlo free reign today, and he made the most of it. The sheer amount of passes he made, 142, is indicative of how much creating he did today. He also assisted Vucinic on the first goal. Towards the end of the match, he almost scored a goal of his own from a free kick. Sadly for Pirlo, Fontana smacked it away.

Vidal: 7. The man had 10 tackles today, retaining his title as best tackler in Italy, and surely cementing his place as one of the top tacklers in all of Europe. What makes this all the more impressive is that he only played 56 minutes. Of course, we can’t forget his slick finish today as well. Bravo Arturo.

Padoin (56′): 6. Padoin was quiet but consistent today. He didn’t make any errors, and his passing was mostly accurate. His defending was consistent as well.

Marchisio: 6. Fine passing today, but he should have scored at least one of his two efforts. Both went far over the crossbar, even though the latter effort came from point blank. Still, not at all a bad game from Claudio.

De Ceglie (60′): 6. More or less a similar match to the one Padoin had. Wasn’t in for long, but still did what was needed.

Vucinic: 8. Two goals, and a relatively small amount of turnovers for Mirko. It was nice to see Vucinic score twice today after all the assisting and creating he’s been doing in recent weeks.

Elia (65′): 6. Seeing as how he’s spent most of his time in Turin locked in Conte’s basement, Elia should perhaps be graded on a curve. Unfortunately I’m not a believer of curving my match ratings. He certainly got himself in some good positions today and had several scoring chances, but his failure to convert these chances is why he only gets a 6 from me.

Borriello: 7. The big hunk was actually a pretty decent prima punta today. He passed to his teammates, helped soak up attention from defenders, and of course he scored on that diving header. Had a few other chances and perhaps could have even scored a hat-trick if he had been a bit more clinical. Still, compared to some of his performances with Juve this was gold.

We face Lecce midweek, and a win there coupled with a Milan loss seals the Scudetto. Milan (who beat Siena 4-1 today) face Atalanta midweek and Inter next weekend. Inter are back into the thick of the Champions’ League race, so they will be desperate to win. To be honest though, it doesn’t matter how Milan does. Juventus control their destiny. Keep winning, and the Scudetto is ours. Praise Conte, and Forza Juve!

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