Benedikt Howedes made his Juventus debut as the Bianconeri thumped Crotone 3-0 with goals from Mandzukic, Benatia and De Sciglio.
Player Ratings
Defence
Gigi Buffon: Barely tested in the first 45 mins and made a good claim on the one effort Crotone had on target in the second half. Solid as always. 5.5/10
Andrea Barzagli: Pushed forward from the back and spent plenty of the first half camped in the Crotone end of the pitch, passing wide and through the centre. Provided a great assist for Mandzukics’ headed opener and saw out the remainder of the game in total control. 6.0/10
Medhi Benatia: Played to the left of the back three and put in a decent shift. Good in the air, excellent man marking. Showed good instinct to stay up from the back and tap home for Juve’s third goal. 6.0/10
Benedikt Howedes: Looked very confident, right from the start. Made a strong interception early on that set the tone for his performance. Barked orders at his teammates, passed the ball out from the back really well and even took a knock to the nose to complete a near-perfect Chiellini impersonation. Impressive. 6.0/10
Alex Sandro: Much improved on recent displays – Lots of energy, good linkup with Costa. Had a fine effort saved from outside the box and remained a good threat down the left but still has a way to go. 5.5/10
Stephan Lichtsteiner: A good showing, playing in a slightly more advanced role. Good defensively and going foward. 5.5/10
Midfield
Claudio Marchisio: Smart runs from midfield, covering every area of the pitch; Provided an added threat in the final third with clever passing and great work between the lines. Good tackling at the back. Juve look a much better side with him on the pitch 6.5/10
Blaise Matuidi: A ball of energy, good running but still needs to work on his delivery in the final third- Had two great chances in the first half and should have converted the header at least. A solid performance. 6.0/10
Attack
Paulo Dybala: Good delivery on the set pieces but was frustrated by the tight Crotone back line. Some nice linkup with Douglas Costa but still needs to improve on his finishing at times. 6.0/10
Douglas Costa: Electric – Moved up and down the pitch with his customary speed. Lovely dribbling on display, skipping past Crotone defenders; Great ideas but a shame his teammates aren’t always on the same wavelength. 6.5/10
Mario Mandzukic: Very lively, drifting in and out of the box, linking well with Dybala. Took the opening goal with a great header, a really tidy finish. Definitely seems to be more of a threat in the centre than on the flank and should be alternating with Higuain so Costa can start more often. 6.5/10
Substitutes
Mattia De Sciglio: A great cameo display, capped by his first ever Serie A goal – Still prone to the odd mistake and needs to remain focused until the final whistle. 6.0/10
Miralem Pjanic: A brief run out, late on, to keep him ticking-over ahead of the match against Napoli on Friday. N/A
Stefano Sturaro: Came on for Marchisio with the game already won. N/A
Haven’t watched a full game in a while, was happy to see us back at winning ways, and without even conceding a goal. Not saying that this means that all is well in defence and midfield, because the fact is we were playing against Crotone and not Real Madrid. That aside, most of the lads looked really good out there. Howedes, I hope this was just a taste of what he can bring to the table.
They beat Crotone. It’s not some huge accomplishment. A potential disaster is on our hands next week in Greece. Mamma Mia, I hope we dont pull an Italy and shit the bed.
You can always rely on a German to put in a shift….. oh, except Sami K of course. There is always an exception to the rule!
I was impressed with Howedes’s composure, but I will reserve judgement until he faces a good team with real striking capabilities. He looked much more comfortable than Rugani IMO.
I was thrilled to see De Sciglio score just like everyone else. However, he is too afraid to go forward or take any chances. He looks more like an 18 year-old guy making his senior debut who is afraid of making a mistake. I hope he loosens up and shows some courage.