Whenever a top side hosts a team facing imminent relegation, most fans and observers expect would expect a straightforward outcome. While this was more or less the case in last night’s encounter between Juventus and Cremonese, the evening didn’t lack its marquee moments.

Sadly for Paul Pogba, his first start of the season depicts all the sorrow of a campaign that never truly took off. The Frenchman was all smiles before kickoff, thrilled with his full re-debut for the Old Lady.

After displaying some of his trademark tricks and flicks, his evening ended in tears after sustaining a muscular injury after 20 minutes of play. When the midfielder fell to the ground, you could hear the collective groan of Juventus fans in attendance, before the sound of a perturbed silence reigned over the Allianz Stadium.

At this point, it is feared that these recurring injuries could prove to be the bane of a career that started brilliantly but never truly reached its apex.

This heartbreaking knock coupled with an underwhelming first-half display left the whole stadium in a bleak mood.

But luckily for the Old Lady, one young soldier took it upon himself to raise the morale and enchant Juventus fans all over the world.

At the start of the match, Max Allegri had two World Champions plus a World Cup finalist in a star-studded midfield. Yet, it was the young Nicolò Fagioli who cemented himself as the hero of the night by scoring an absolute rocket from a play he launched himself, breaking the deadlock at the expense of his former Cremonese teammates.

This fabulous goal was a significant moment for both the player and the club. The 22-year-old endured a rough period recently which saw him dropped from the starting lineup.

This negative run was symbolized by a blunder that led to Sassuolo’s winner last month, which reduced the young man to tears after exiting the pitch.

Therefore, Fagioli desperately needed a booster to restore his morale before the decisive matches of the season.

As for Juventus, the match could well represent a passing of the torch moment. Hopefully, Pogba’s recent setback won’t be as devastating as the previous ones, but for now, the writing is on the wall, and denying it would be utterly absurd.

Due to the 30-year-old’s fragile physical condition, putting him at the center of the project would be building a house on sand. For now, Pogba is at best an expensive part-timer, one that the club must cope with, for better or worse.

Therefore, Fagioli’s timely ascent will be vital for the club. The youngster rose through Juve’s youth ranks while idolizing Pogba. So while us proving to be an unreliable asset for the club, the Italian tended to the Old Lady’s wounds.

The former Cremonese man might pale in comparison to the Frenchman in terms of flashiness and flamboyance, but he surely doesn’t lack the required technical skills to become the main protagonist in the middle of the park.

Aside from Pogba, Fagioli isn’t just picking up the baton from the injury-prone French star, but even the likes of Adrien Rabiot and Leandro Paredes could well depart at the end of the season.

Now surely the Italian alone can’t raise the entire department on his shoulders, but with the reliable Manuel Locatelli by his side, along with the gradually-improving Fabio Miretti and the possibly-returning Nicolò Rovella, Juventus are witnessing the dawn of a new era, and Fagioli might just be the cherry on top and the guiding light in this somber period.