AC Milan and Juventus both dropped crucial points in their respective quests for the Serie A title and a Champions League qualification spot with a 0-0 draw in a crucial league match. It was a match which was reflective of the final score - obvious chances were rare and both teams lacked the killer touch on the offensive end. Juve can count themselves rather fortunate to have escaped San Siro with a point after failing to register even one shot on target.
Nevertheless, the result leaves Juve in fifth place in the league, 11 points behind leaders Inter Milan but having played an additional match. This means that if the season were to end today, Juve would fail to qualify for next season's Champions League. If Juve were to remain outside the top four at season's end, it would be the first time in 11 years that the Bianconeri would miss out on Europe's leading club tournament.
Juve's collapse over the past two seasons has been stunning to witness. During the period spanning the 2011-12 and 2019-20 seasons, Juve won the Serie A title every single time, often by massive margins. They also won four Coppa Italia titles and reached the final of the Champions League in 2015 and 2017, losing to Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively.
The point of origin of Juve's collapse can easily be pinpointed: the firing of former head coach Maurizio Sarri at the end of the 2019-20 season. Juve had just come off an upset loss at the hands of Lyon in the Champions League. In a move that few saw coming, Sarri was forced out of the club the very next day and replaced by Andrea Pirlo. This would prove to be a catastrophic move as in his one season in charge at Allianz Stadium, Pirlo would turn in one of the worst single-season coaching performances of the last decade. Despite inheriting a loaded team, Pirlo somehow managed to take Juve to a highly disappointing fourth-place finish in the league. He also presided over a last-16 Champions League exit and was deservedly fired at season's end.
The return of Massimiliano Allegri to the Juve dugout at the beginning of this season temporarily brought some optimism. However, it soon became clear that the problems at Juve extended far beyond the identity of the head coach. Juve stumbled out of the gates this season, dropping cheap points left, right, and centre. Despite topping their Champions League group, their upcoming round of 16 tie against Villarreal will by no means be straightforward.
Allegri's tactics in his second stint in charge of Juve have also been questionable on many occasions. His decision to deploy Adrien Rabiot as a winger has been a real head-scratcher, while his midfield pairings in his 4-4-2 formation which combine any duo of Weston McKennie, Manuel Locatelli, Rodrigo Bentancur, and Federico Bernardeschi are clearly not working. It can even be argued that the very fact that Allegri favours a 4-4-2 formation is suspect; this formation is considered to be outdated and obsolete by most.
Additionally, Juve made an inexcusable error in the transfer window of the previous off-season by failing to account for the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo. This left them with Álvaro Morata, Paulo Dybala, and Moise Kean as their primary strikers. As was so clearly shown against Milan, Juve have unsurprisingly struggled up front all season long. With the two-thirds mark of the season approaching, the Turin club have found the net a meagre 34 times over 23 league matches. To put this figure in perspective, Juve score fewer goals per league match than do clubs such as Leicester City, Valencia, 1. FC Köln, and Eintracht Frankfurt - not exactly the most distinguished of company.
It's still too early to write the obituary on Juve's season, of course. However, the way things are going, the future does not look good for Juventus at all. This doesn't just apply to the rest of this season - it could be years before Juve are once again a genuine contender for domestic or continental titles. There seems to be no end in sight to their woes.
The powerhouse that was built over so many seasons has clearly been brought down in just one. A long, long rebuild seems likely.
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