Can Juve Compete For The Scudetto? Last night Juventus and Inter played out a fiery 1-1 draw at the Stadio Olimpico. However based on last night’s performance and the season as a whole so far - can the Bianconeri seriously challenge for the Scudetto come May?
Following their promotion from Serie B, Juventus were tipped by many people to struggle this season. The Calciopoli scandal had badly taken its toll on the club, with no less than five world class players (Fabio Cannavaro, Lilian Thuram, Gianluca Zambrotta, Patrick Vieira and Zlatan Ibrahimovic) leaving the club last summer.
However La Vecchia Signora have performed admirably and currently sit in fourth position, just four points behind Inter after 11 games played. This gap would have been even closer had Juve not been robbed by a scandalous referee during the week nine defeat to Napoli.
Last night Juventus recovered from a goal down to earn a 1-1 draw with Inter in a ferocious Derby d’Italia. In the build-up to the game David Trezeguet had said that the match would be a pointer to see just how far the team could go this season.
So what were the conclusions?
Well if the Italian Championship was based on grit, determination and heart – then Juventus would be the winners hands down.
The Bianconeri have a fighting spirit imprinted in their DNA – they just never know when they are beaten. Trailing last night to Julio Cruz’s goal, Juve held on when Inter threatened to score a second, and were rewarded as Mauro Camoranesi equalised with just 12 minutes remaining.
This season Ranieri’s men have won crucial points with numerous late goals. Against Cagliari in week two, the team had been playing against 12 men for the whole game but managed to find the mental strength to grab a 90th minute winner through Giorgio Chiellini.
In week four Vincenzo Iaquinta rescued a point against Roma with an 87th minute header, while in the Turin derby a week later David Trezeguet scored with the last kick of the game to earn a 1-0 victory over Torino.
On the technical side of things, Juventus are perhaps a little short, and this will probably count against them come the end of the season. Despite dominating possession for long spells of the game yesterday, they struggled to create many clear-cut openings.
The Bianconeri are probably lacking a playmaker in midfield, someone who can open up an opposition defence with a through-pass. They are also short of genuine match-winners in their team – players who can win a game by themselves with a piece of individual brilliance.
Inter have the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Luis Figo, Milan have Andrea Pirlo, Kaka and Clarence Seedorf, while Roma have Francesco Totti and Amantino Mancini.
Juventus could claim to possess Alessandro Del Piero and Pavel Nedved, but due to their advancing years, their moments of brilliance are decreasing game by game.
Juventus, along with Fiorentina, undoubtedly have the best crop of young players coming through in Italy. The likes of Raffaele Palladino, Antonio Nocerino, Claudio Marchisio and in particular Sebastian Giovinco are all stars of the future.
Giorgio Chiellini also showed last night that he is fast becoming the symbol of this Juventus side. The 23-year-old was a colossus and marked Ibrahimovic out of the game with a robust display.
His taunting and mocking of the Swedish star may have gone slightly over the top, however it is sure to have delighted any hardcore Bianconeri fan who feels betrayed by Ibra following Calciopoli.
The future is certainly bright for Juve - however this year may just be a season too early for them.
What are your views? Can Juve compete for the Scudetto? We want to know what YOU think?
Carlo Garganese
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