Alex Sandro scored the only goal of the game but Juventus looked in total control as they secured a vital three points against Torino in the Derby Della Mole.
Player Ratings
Defence
Bob Szczesny: Made a good save in the first half but was seldom troubled afterwards. Great ball distribution throughout and another easy save late on to see the game out. 6.5/10
Giorgio Chiellni: Great positioning at the back, kept Belotti well marked and barely gave the striker an inch of space. Used all his defensive cunning to draw fouls in tight spots and even managed to gallop forward on occasion. 7.0/10
Daniele Rugani: Played the ball out from the back with real confidence and dealt very well with a Torino counterattack early on. Closed up the space at the back and made some telling clearances. 7.0/10
Kwadwo Asamoah: Strong and intimidating, he was good in the tackle and made his presence felt. Had a great half volley cleared off the line and did his defensive duties well. 6.0/10
Mattia De Sciglio: A quiet first half but at no stage did he look overly troubled by Ansaldi. Played a more defensive role in the second half but once against had the measure of Niang. 6.0/10
Midfield
Sami Khedira: Hard to fault his passing game as he spent more time trying to get in the opposition half than sitting in midfield. Offered nothing of note and played too advanced on occasion to offer Pjanic any real support. 5.5/10
Stefano Sturaro: Much better than in recent games – Made his presence more felt in the centre of the pitch and disrupted some Toro attacks. Good to see him running into the box to pressure Sirigu on a number of occasions. 6.0/10
Miralem Pjanic: Tested Sirigu with a great free-kick in the first half. Afforded more space to manoeuvre as the game developed but had to keep dropping deep to collect the ball. 6.5/10
Attack
Alex Sandro: A massive improvement – Dynamic and full of pace, keeping Silvestri pegged back. In the right place at the right time to give Juve the lead with an easy tap-in and was blistering down the left-flank. 7.0/10
Douglas Costa: Switched to the centre after Higuain’s injury and looked all the better for it, making some excellent dribbles and getting into the right spaces. 6.0/10
Gonzalo Higuain: Subbed off after picking up an ankle injury early on in the game. N/A
Substitutes
Federico Bernardeschi: Came on in place of Higuain and immediately settled into the game by pushing high up and pressing Molinaro. Did all the hard work in the build up to Juve’s opener, putting in a perfect cross for Sandro to finish. His movement off the ball was exceptional and his runs into the box made it hard for Toro to keep him marked. 7.0/10
Paulo Dybala: Returned to action and was in the thick of it immediately, creating three half chances, one of which he should have scored. 6.0/10
Stephan Lichtsteiner: A few minutes to make a late cameo, nothing of note. N/A
Good ratings boss.
I want to share this
Hiring players should not be all about who is available on a free, about tactical versatility, or technique or statistics, but about mentality of the player.
I give an example:
“Alexis is an amazing player, for me one of the best players in the Premier League for sure. But he’s a player who always wants to win. He demands from everyone, and sometimes it can be quite too much,” Bellerin responded.
Source: https://www.freebets.com/news/arsenal-star-takes-dig-alexis-sanchez-left-club?utm_source=Freebets.com%20-%20Troll%20Football&utm_medium=News&utm_content=AlexisPROBLEM
Question for Fabio paratici. Do we want more Bellerin´s? or do we want more Alexis´s? My personal taste is we need a squad a rosa of 22 Alexis pushing each other toward excellence.
For as much as Dani Alves should´t have trash mouthed Juve´s italian style he is undoubtedly a winner.
Agree with you Seba – Free transfers have been a blessing for us, but we need players with the right mentality. We’ve been fortunate to land the likes of Pirlo, Pogba etc but going forward, it needs to be about how player x can elevate us beyond the level we are currently at. For me, the biggest problem lies with the midfield – The defence need protection, a destroyer who can play box to box, someone who can provide a creative spark and someone who can hold possession. Pjanic is doing it alone for now and Khedira/Sturaro and some others are just not up to the grade. Matuidi has been bought in and is doing good things, but at the wrong end of his career – We need big names in the summer to bring us on par with the likes of barca and Bayern
A year ago or so I relly wanted us to get Kanté. He has somewhat dissapeared and people now talk Casemiro Dembelé and I don´t knw who else. Then we tried to get Matic and it fell, but Matic is a question mark, and it doesnt matter at this point.
Juve has a knack for hiring outcasts, hopefully Kanté has reached that level, i would break the bank to get him.
Who would be our next Edgar Davids in your view? any young italian to fill that gap?
I wish Sturaro had stepped up more to that void.
Emre Can could be a step in the right direction but i haven’t watched enough of him to say either way.
Milinkovic Savic is the player we need, if money is no object.
Quality has to be the way forward.
He might though it is not clear if he will come. Many praise Milinkvic a lot. Sounds compelling. Its all speculation at this point. Apparently for now we have Sturaro, and Marchisio as his sub.
The challenge is finding true champions. Once we have one as we did with Alves we are no seller club. As for the loser or lazy ones sell em even if at a discount.
I am of the view it is not a sin or despicable to be a loser. Mankind maybe harmfully praises winners and condemns losers hyping the former and bullying the former.
My contention is Juve has to pick a camp and be honest to the fans about it, let the fans know where the club stands. Are we inclined to be of the likes of Arsenal or are we inclined to truly be permanently on the elite?
I am not yet in any way sold on De Sciglio. He seems more fit and sharp, but one of the most defensive fullbacks I have seen at the club for many many moons. He doesn’t appear to offer anywhere near as much support on the flank as even a 34 year old Swiss locomotive, which again lessens out ability to move the ball from the back to the front swiftly – which for me is the most obvious issue this season. Many moves are on the counter or rather telegraphed, with us breaking down opponents through sheer pressure, attrition, not flowing, cohesive football.
Again I thought the midfield was fairly woeful. Pjanic found more of the ball, against an ultra defensive Toro, yet also got fairly mangled. Sturaro was slightly better, but essentially offered close to zero going forward, and Sami was as ineffective as he has been for the majority of games this season. What the hell is going on with Il Principino…for me, if sharp, if fit, he remains one of the most complete midfielders in Europe. It must be a physical complaint or…its another decision of Max I am very much at odds with. His experience, fervour, intelligence, technique offers so much of what we lack with Sami and Sturaro…
Also…Belotti is an awful throwback to constant theatrics, constant efforts to get other players in trouble, awful attitude…And Orsatti is a sadist. Amusing yet also a little worrying when we are already missing some key players! I like his style.
I’d say Savic in (even for 90-100 mill) – Khedira OUT along with Sturaro 10-15 mill. With Emre Can in that’s more or less it. If we can sign a fast right back for 20-40 mill I’ll be satisfied with our transfer campaign. Lichtsteiner out too.