A win at last!
For a club that adopts the motto of winning is all that matters, Juventus surely weren’t winning enough. In fact, the team failed to register a single victory in all competitions throughout the dreadful month of September.
Thankfully, Max Allegri’s men managed to break the disastrous run with a convincing win over Bologna last night.
Filip Kostic opened the floodgates, and the striking partnership of Dusan Vlahovic and Arek Milik followed suit in the second half.
For once, the team looked composed, energetic and positive. For once, we can confidently call this bunch a “team”.
Now the question that poses itself is regarding the near future. Did Juventus actually turn a corner? Will it be the real rebirth under Allegri’s guidance? Or is it simply another false dawn?
Although the display was surely encouraging, Juve were up against a side that is undergoing an identity change – which has arguably been a recurring theme in Turin for the last three years.
After spending several campaigns playing with a back-three under the tutelage of Sinisa Mihajlovic, his successor Thiago Motta is attempting to implement a completely different style and system.
Well, at least we won’t have to wait for too long to find out the answer for these questions, as the upcoming Tour de Force will see the Bianconeri clashing against Milan and Torino while also having some crucial European fixtures to negotiate.
Here are some of our random takeaways gathered from the Old Lady’s victory over Bologna:
- Having the men upfront scoring the goals is always a positive sign. Now surely midfielders and defenders should contribute from time to time, but a healthy team relies first and foremost on its strikers for goals.
- Milik is an absolute monster, whether inside the box, or on its edge. Following a couple of warnings, he gave Skorupski no chance with his scorcher.
- Despite scoring thrice, Juventus remain wasteful in front of goal. Milik was perhaps unlucky to see his header crash against the bar, but Vlahovic should have done better when he found himself in front of the goalkeeper. Juan Cuadrado also contributed with his customary miss. While the team afforded to be wasteful against Bologna, we must be more clinical in tightly-contested affairs, where ever miss comes with a hefty price.
- Gleison Bremer looked more confident when playing on Leonardo Bonucci’s right side instead of the opposite way around.
- It appears that Allegri’s eventual midfield trio will be Locatelli-Paredes-Rabiot, at least until Paul Pogba returns to action.
- Despite the victory, the half-empty Allianz Stadium remains a sorrowful sight.