Thursday 16 July, 2009
Blog: Ferrara’s first
Juventus kicked off their season with a friendly win over Cisco Roma. Antonio Labbate ponders what lessons, if any, were learnt
We got a glimpse of the new Juventus yesterday. I say new in the loosest term given that Diego was sidelined for precautionary reasons, Fabio Cannavaro had not reported for pre-season training yet and the Felipe Melo deal was only confirmed after the 4-1 win over Cisco Roma.
As a result, the 10,000 or so fans at Pinzolo saw the old Juve in a fresh guise. No longer lining up in the 4-4-2 shape that the faithful had become accustomed to for much of the last decade, La Signora used a 4-3-1-2 system – with Alex Del Piero playing as the '1’, as a favour to boss Ciro Ferrara, in the absence of Diego.
The captain’s performance, like that of so many of his colleagues, was insignificant.
He won’t play in that role over the next 12 months and the tie was an opportunity to simply familiarise himself with the ball again after a few tough days of reconditioning his body. Perhaps that explains his horror error in front of goal, an early contender for miss of pre-season that one.
Yet the tie did offer an insight into what we should expect from the Old Lady in 2009-10. Defensively speaking, Jonathan Zebina has played his way back into first team contention after being ignored by Claudio Ranieri in recent seasons.
His rehabilitation under Ferrara will be unpopular with fans, but it is a shrewd move by the new tactician. The Frenchman is more technically gifted than Zdenek Grygera and has the potential to be a very good player, if he can maintain some sort of mental and physical stability.
Another who looks determined to return to first team duties is David Trezeguet. After a term plagued by injuries and clashes with Ranieri, the World Cup winner has impressed in pre-season so far. That culminated in his goal against Cisco, a header which underlined his awareness in the box. Vincenzo Iaquinta wouldn’t have put that chance away.
The midfield remains something of a mystery given that Melo and Momo Sissoko were absent. Wednesday’s game saw Cristiano Zanetti fielded in front of the defence, with Tiago to his left and Christian Poulsen on his right.
It was a system that didn’t really suit the Dane. If he stays in Turin, however unlikely that may be, Ferrara may have to transform him into something else just to find a use for him. Perhaps a right-back or a central defender?
Zanetti looked smooth and in control. Strong in the tackle and always with his head up, one constantly wonders how good a player he could have been had he not constantly been affected by injuries.
And what of Tiago? He’s insisting that this could finally be his year after two tough campaigns. I’m a believer. He knows how to play in a three-man midfield after his experiences at Chelsea and Lyon. He deserves one more chance and it looks like he’s going to get it.
C4
Haha Where is Eseban? We called that yesterday that is for sure
Buy on AliExpress.com
