First of all, kudos for Juventus CEO Maurizio Arrivabene for significantly lowering the wage bill since taking over just over a year ago.
However, there seems to be a clause in some secret collective agreement between the club and the squad which states that the players only have to perform for 20 minutes or so (of their choosing) from the total 90.
For what feels like the umpteenth time this season, Juventus took the lead while looking inspired during the opening stages of the match, only to expectedly fade away as the minutes progressed while looking unmotivated, lost and without a shred of character.
At this point, is it worth celebrating a Juventus goal? Now surely it has become a rare occurrence these days, but what’s the point, really? Either VAR steals the joy away or our players press the self-destruct button. Regardless of the cause, damnation feels inevitable.
At the end of the day, we’re yet to register a single point from two Champions League fixtures, and our chances of reaching the knockout stages are hanging by a thread.
And to be fair, we have no business whatsoever in the tournament’s advanced stages. Benfica isn’t a perfect team by any means, but despite its weaknesses, the Iberians are better equipped and much more deserving of a spot in the final 16.
While the resilient Eagles grit their teeth and maintained their composure after going down, our players simply don’t possess the right mentality to don the historic black and white jersey nor do they have enough determination to give their all for the cause. Sadly.
Here are some other random takeaways from our miserable European night:
- Surely you noticed that we haven’t mentioned public enemy number one, Max Allegri, just yet, but this doesn’t mean that he didn’t have a role to play in the collapse. While his starting formation was arguably the best he could field at the moment, taking off Arek Milik was simply inexplicable considering how the latter was our solitary source of hope upfront.
- Few years ago, we used to wonder how the squad will cope without the inspiring leadership of Gianluigi Buffon, Giorgio Chiellini, Claudio Marchisio and Andrea Barzagli. Well, here’s the answer.
- During the final minutes of the match, a friend of mine texted me saying he’s done with Juventus until a new manager arrives. Apparently, many share the same sentiment as evidenced by the number of empty seats at the Allianz Stadium during the “big European night”. So the team’s performances aren’t just hard on the eyes and terrible for the standings, they’re simply bad for business in every sense of the word.
- Luckily, Juan Cuadrado is suspended for Monza, because the poor guy needs some rest as soon as possible.
- With such a massive engine, Weston McKennie can a be an absolute beast in the middle of the park. Too bad he doesn’t possess the technical skills to compliment it.
- Fabio Miretti deservers some support. It’s not his fault that he’s making his breakthrough at a club that is in shambles. Yes, he gave away a penalty, but he least he was putting up a fight to retain the ball.