dont know if you guys saw this article on goal.com
good stuff
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Juventus: Analysis Of A Downfall
4/14/2005 4:55:00 PM
The European dreams for the Bianconeri were wiped out by Liverpool on Wednesday night after an opaque performance by Fabio Capello’s side. However this result might mean more than just a simple elimination as we take a look at what were the causes and what will happen now.
Juventus were a pale shadow of the team that defeated Real Madrid in the previous round: character and grit were completely missing which the Old Lady is usually renowned for, as the Bianconeri hardly tried to push forward in a match which they needed to win at all costs. In fact this is probably what mostly disappoints the Juve fans as their beloved squad hardly tried to win a game which was well within their reach.
Liverpool are a good team, no doubt about that, but Juventus are on paper probably a notch above the English side. However, as was proven on Wednesday, there is a big difference between being better and actually proving on the field that you are better. This was the case in the two legs which exposed the Bianconeri’s evident problems in midfield and attack.
Against a depleted squad, Juventus were the outright favourites to go through as Liverpool were considered the underdogs in both legs. Gerrard’s unavailability for the second leg further boosted the confidence of the Bianconeri fans and predictions of 2-0 or even 3-0 score lines were quite common among punters and supporters alike.
Overconfidence, or as the Reds fans might say, arrogance. Yes, Juve was arrogant and did not take Liverpool seriously enough. The Old Lady thought that this quarter final would be a walk in the park and did not devote the same attention they did to the Real Madrid game which in part might explain the mediocre performance in the first half of the first leg and throughout the whole second leg.
Just two goal scoring chances in 90 minutes? Is that all that a supposedly world class team can create in a must-win encounter? Then no wonder they have been (deservedly) kicked out of this competition, leaving Juventus licking its (many) wounds. After the match against Real, morale was extremely high as the team was expected to at least reach the semis.
During the night one can claim that Capello’s tactical decisions (Olivera from the start? No Zalayeta?), Trezeguet’s absence (the long ball type of game would have suited him perfectly just like it did against Real where he completely changed the tide of the match) and the disappearance of key figures (Nedved and Del Piero) in the most crucial match of the season were, amongst others, the main factors, but a whole season should not be judged only on one game.
The problem is evident: the squad lacks depth especially in midfield and attack. Emerson cannot carry the whole midfield on his shoulders; he did so for most part of the season and now fatigue is taking over as the Brazilian has lost his early season flair and form. Considering that there are no real alternatives for Emerson, the player must play for most of the matches no matter what.
Apart from Camoranesi, none of the other midfielders is creative enough and this led to poor ideas and practically no real fluent maneuver like Milan, Chelsea or any other top European club has. Moggi will need to work hard on this, otherwise next year it will be more of the same: solid team but no ideas and plans to outwit its opponents. Solidity does not always lead to wins, even though it helps.
Wednesday night’s debacle cannot be attributed to just one man as it was a whole team and club defeat, but this loss will most surely fuel up the usual Del Piero debate. His fans will defend him to death by saying that all players did not perform well, whilst the other Juve fans will insist that if Pinturicchio is a world class player, then he should be able to lead the team to victory in the big games and against all adversity. The truth probably lies somewhere in the middle but it must be said that in the past years Del Piero has only been effective once in decisive matches (CL vs. Real 3-1).
Even for Nedved, saying that he was under par is probably saying too little. The 33-year-old player is clearly going downhill and cannot perform at high levels as he used to before. A solution for Juve might be getting new blood by selling these fading stars now that their price tag is still relatively high, but that will most likely not happen.
The fans will also attack Capello’s decisions and ideas which nowadays seem quite obsolete and sterile. Apart from starting with Olivera instead of Zalayeta, the former Milan and Roma coach made some other questionable choices. It is true that Appiah and Pessotto are not important players in this squad, but sending them in just for the last 10 minutes is a very useless and desperate move as it could not (and did not) reap any fruits.
What future awaits the Bianconeri now? The Scudetto is still a possibility but against this current Milan side it seems unlikely too. Still, this will be the only way to salvage a season which is all of a sudden going down the drain. Juventus probably need to start a mini-revolution in an ageing squad by removing players which have become complacent and ineffective, whilst bringing in fully motivated technical ones (Cassano, Aimar, Rosicky etc…) who want to marry the Juve winning philosophy and help the team to reach important objectives.
A very possible scenario would be that if Juve do win the Scudetto, Moggi will insist that the team is already good enough for next season and the side will only be re-touched in some areas. However, losing the Scudetto might lead to a healthy shake-up of the squad.
For the time being Juve fans can only feel disappointed and gutted with the abysmal performance of their squad and just wait till the end of the season before finally drawing a balance which they hope will be in part positive.
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