Stir Alex Ferguson belittled Arsenal’s 2003-04 unbeaten run, who went the entire Premier League season without defeat, accusing them of “too many draws”. So what this year? Juventus? They are the only unbeaten team in Serie A, yet they have won just six of their 16 games.
Saturday’s match at home was expected to give Venice its seventh. Juventus made it four consecutive runs by beating Manchester City in the Champions League. Pep Guardiola’s squad have certainly been in a tailspin, but they are not the only ones. Venice sat last in the Serie A table, without liking October.
This was Juventus’ chance to build momentum. But they almost found a way to lose, blowing a half-time lead and needing a 95th-minute penalty from Dusan Vlahovic to redeem the lead. Venezia manager Eusebio Di Francesco described the result as “they dropped two points”.
A track record in the game has never been allowed. Juventus took the lead after 19 minutes, Federico Gatti firing home from close range after Khéphren Thuram headed across goal for a corner. Boasting the highest average possession of any team in the league Bianconeri he seemed less disposed to keep his adversary at arm’s length.
The Venetians, however, did not panic, but kept their form to attack the opportunities. When he played more than an hour, Caietano Oristanio was cut from the right and cleverly passed through the channel of Magnum Andersen, shooting three defenders. The Dane laid the ball back to Francis Zampano, who crossed for Mikael Ellertsson to head at the back post.
The ball was slippery to move, the forces adapting to Di Francesco’s assertions that his team was playing better than the results would suggest. Even Juventus had to be avoided. It got worse, as Nicolussi Caviglia – a graduate of his academy – provided an assist for Jay Idzes to head for Venezia 20 minutes later.
His injuries undermined the youth defense. The best centre-back, Gleison Bremer, suffered an injury to his ligament in October and summer signing Juan Cabal soon after. Andreas Cambiaso, one of the most outstanding players playing at full back on either side of the formation, was also absent here.
However, Juventus was still struggling under Thiago Motta. A team that looked dull, sluggish and underachieving under Maximiliano Allegri after taking over from the Brazilian this summer has managed to score three goals in five of their first eight matches. Derby d’Italia against Inter in October ends in a 4-4 lead.
Even then, though, these offshoots of the Wild West are curiously interspersed with a large number of collected threads. There were three in the month of September alone – as many, coincidentally, as he had written during the same period of the previous season with the governors of Bologna.
Fans chose that good omen. Juventus was clearly not yet the perfect article, but this was a roadmap for better times ahead. Bologna had qualified for the Champions League for the first time since 1964 – when it was still known as the European Cup and was only open to the domestic champions.
Perhaps even more, there has been a distinct and creative brand of football. Juventus sought to renew itself with the end of Allegri’s previous tenure in 2019. Maurizio Sarri was dismissed at the time when he thought he could inject an identity that went beyond “just winning”, a deliberate vision and a tactical ideal against flattery. the pragmatism of his predecessor.
In the end, though, Sarri only offered continuity: delivering another Scudetto that failed to capture the imagination. His successor, Andreas Pirlo, finally broke the mold, but by no means wanted: finishing fourth and ending his run of nine consecutive titles. That failure brought the club back to Allegri.
His presence has offered stability to a troubled chapter that witnessed the resignation of the entire board in 2022 and will continue to work hard to run up the wage bill after years of heavy losses on the club’s balance sheet. However, the plan was part of the way immediately after Allegri had handed Juventus their first piece of silverware in three years to win the Coppa Italia in May the constant longing for a new arrival.
It was never expected that Motta would take Juventus straight to the top. Juventus spent more than €150m in transfer fees this summer, landing high-profile targets Douglas Luiz and Teun Koopmeiners, but also brought in more than €100m through sales. With player salaries up to a reported 60% of what they were four years ago, this was less expensive than it might appear on the surface.
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He realized that the time would come when he came to bed, and Motta realized his vision. His Bologna stand out for their fluidity – the ease with which the players moved into positions to create openings without leaving themselves exposed. Until now, players need to spend time decorating their lives.
However, there would always be little hope. We must win Champions League football again next season. Juventus are nine points worse than Allegri’s corresponding level last year.
By no means is the board losing patience but supporters vented their frustrations at full-time on Saturday, calling out the players under the Curve Sud at the Allianz Stadium and demanding a greater effort. After Vlahovic appeared to refuse, he dismissed the gesture and was showered with insulting chants. It has been reported that the police are looking for someone who allegedly made a death threat to him.
Vlahovic sought to cool the atmosphere on social media after acknowledging the frustration surrounding the event and promising to give everything for the shirt. He has scored 11 goals so far this season, on track to make his best with the club in a €70m transfer from Fiorentina in 2022, but remains the target of criticism, accused of both taking easy chances and not working hard enough. .
He could not have helped himself to the comments in international duty last month, when he suggested that it would be easier for him with the national team, since he could leave some aerial duels to Aleksandar Mitrovic and did not ask him to defend so much. . It’s entirely true, though, that Arkadiusz Milik’s knee injury has put Vlahovic in charge to always lead the line.
This is a young Juventus team that the likes of Kenan Yildiz and Francisco Conceição have shown brilliantly in games and less so in others. The win in the city was a timely reminder of the potential that exists.
What is not yet clear is whether Motta has understood the best ways to nurture. Juventus remain undefeated now, but nowhere near Invincible.