After the weekend draw at Verona, Juventus managed to bounce back with a 3-0 win over Spezia on Tuesday.
Similarly to the first match between the two sides, the newly promoted side made life difficult for the Bianconeri in the first half.
However, the introduction of Alvaro Morata and Federico Bernardeschi paid off almost immediately.
The Italian provided the assist for the Spaniard on the opening goal, before setting up his compatriot Federico Chiesa on the second.
Cristiano Ronaldo marked his stamp on the win with his 20th goal of the season, finishing off a swift counter attack.
So here are the three lessons that we learned from the match.
Morata’s importance
Cristiano Ronaldo and Dejan Kulusevski didn’t have a bad match at all.
Starting as the two strikers once again, The Portuguese and the Swede created chances for one another, but unfortunately , they were both a little wasteful in front of goal.
Nevertheless, Morata managed to score a goal right after his introduction, which showcases once again the importance of having a natural center forward within the formation.
The former Real Madrid striker is always willing to run directly towards the opposition’s goal – even at the near post – making life much easier for his supporting crew.
Another player with similar characteristics has to be added to next season’s squad.
Discontinuity
As we’ve been noticing since the beginning of the season, Juventus simply cannot keep up on a high tempo for long spells throughout the match.
This fact has been made even more obvious during the last two matches.
The Bianconeri were completely outpaced by Verona over the last 20 minutes on Saturday.
On Tuesday, Juve had a very slow start to the match, only coming to life at the final minutes of the first half.
Perhaps it’s the physical aspect – due to the overpacked campaign and the lack of depth – or maybe it’s a mental issue.
Arguably, it’s a little bit of both. But in all cases, Andrea Pirlo needs to find a quick solution for this enduring problem.
Bernardeschi’s new role
Maybe it was due to the size of the opposition, or simply because he came off fresh from the bench, but Bernardeschi put on his best display in quite some time.
The former Fiorentina man created the first two goals after his introduction, and was simply a menace for Spezia on the left flank.
The 27-year-old has been slowly transforming to a left wingback under Pirlo, so will this move prove to be a carrier savior – similar to Cuadrado’s?
Only time will tell.
