Tactical Analysis: It’s Time For Juventus To Rethink Their Tactics

With the departures of key players like Andrea Pirlo, Arturo Vidal and Carlos Tevez, Juventus will have to rethink their tactics or risk losing their advantage over their competitors.

This summer has been one of the more interesting ones in Serie A in recent memory. While a host of teams have used the transfer market to strengthen their side, Juventus have used it to revolutionize and galvanise the team. That’s not to say that the bianconeri have not strengthened their unit as they have brought in a number of quality players like Mario Mandžukić and Paulo Dybala among others. The departures of Arturo Vidal, Andrea Pirlo and Carlos Tevez, however, mean that changes are on the horizon in Turin. Their desire to play possession based football will be put to the test next season without the three aforementioned champions. In fact, there is a good chance that Juventus will move away from this philosophy completely in favour of counter attacking football. When looking at their roster in comparison to season’s past, they cannot be faulted for giving it a shot. Now, let’s take a look at the evolution that has taken place at the club for the last few seasons.

For the last four years, Juventus have played some of the most attractive football in Italy but most importantly have secured positive results. When Antonio Conte was handed the reigns at the club, the bianconeri were guilty of playing without an identity. The team lacked heart and the results followed suit. The Bari tactician, however, immediately sought to change this and instilled a winning mentality back into the team. In his three years in charge, Juventus won three league titles and two Italian Supercups. While trophies determine legacies, it is Conte’s system that has left its mark at the club. Under the Italy boss, the Italian champions played at a frantic, neck-breaking pace. Quite frankly. Juventus simply overpowered the opposition by outrunning and outworking them for the whole ninety minutes. Surely, there were games where this didn’t work, especially when the quality of the opposition went up. It became clearer and clearer that this system had clear shortcomings against Europe’s top dogs and was in need of fine tuning. Unfortunately, Conte was not able to apply these final tweaks and decided to leave for greener pastures at the end of his third season in charge. Things quickly changed when his successor came in and gradually stamped his mark on the side.

Massimiliano Allegri’s appointment was greeted with extreme controversy upon the announcement. Juventus fans had just seen their club legend, who brought them back to former heights, replaced by one of their rivals’ outcasts. When the former Cagliari manager was driving to Vinovo to sign his deal, fans angrily waited for him and sang obscene chants. Not to mention the whole “gol di Muntari” situation. Allegri wasn’t exactly a fan favourite among Juventini, to say the least. Oh boy, how wrong were they? Allegri led the team to their fourth consecutive Scudetto and their first Coppa Italia since 1995. To be fair, though, hindsight is twenty-twenty. At the beginning of his tenure, the former Milan boss did not want to ruffle any feathers and stuck with ‘Conte’s Juve’ so to speak. After being on the brink of elimination in the Champions League, Allegri decided it was time to make his presence felt and began using his preferred 4-3-1-2 formation. While there were a few bumps in the road, significant progress was made last season and the team evolved in unimaginable ways. For one, Juventus had finally gotten over their mental roadblock in Europe and progressed to the Champions League final by beating the likes of Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid.

How were they able to finally achieve success in Europe? The answer to this question is not a simple one but at the very heart of it are the change in tactics from Conte’s Juve to Allegri’s. Under Conte, Juventus attempted to steamroll the opposition with unforeseen levels of pressing and movement. While it was pleasing on the eye and brought results domestically, it never cut it on the international stage. Allegri, on the other hand, opted for a more tactical approach and had his side play to a more relaxed tune. This suited Juventus beautifully and brought out a different side to them that never previously came to the fore. The Italian champions, for the first time, were comfortable with sitting back and absorbing pressure. By discovering this quality in his side, Allegri learned how his Juve would take the next step: Using his head instead of his players legs.

Now, with the departures of Pirlo, Tevez and Vidal, Allegri will once again have to rethink his tactics. Luckily, Juventus’ performances in this year’s Champions League provide him with the perfect blueprint. In the second leg against Borussia Dortmund, the bianconeri chose to sit back and hit the Germans on the counter instead of taking the game to them. Their choice to do so brought perhaps the best football Juventus have ever played over the last four years and propelled them to the final eight of the Champions League. In the quarter-finals against Monaco, Juventus applied similar tactics after taking the lead and never looked back. After being drawn with Real Madrid, the team believed in themselves and were able to progress thanks to their ability to suffer in games. Against European powerhouses like the Spanish giants, there is bound to be moments where a team will struggle. Instead of crumbling under the pressure, teams have to find ways to rise to the occasion. Juventus’ way to rise to the occasion is by hitting the opposition on the counter within a moment’s notice. Look at the images below to see what I’m referring to.

At the time of this move, Juventus were up 1-0 in the game and 3-1 on aggregate. Due to their comfortable standing, the bianconeri sat deep and exploited Borussia Dortmund’s high line. After a turnover from the German giants, Allegri’s side took full advantage and were in on goal within two passes. This devastating change of pace was a breath of fresh air for Juventus fans as it has not been something they have seen their team do very much. Ironically, the future success of their current team will likely hinge on their ability to play on the counter. Another instance in which this was evident was against Real Madrid in the first leg.

 

 

Once again, it took Juventus no longer than thirty seconds to burst down the field and hurt their opposition. With the game tied at 1-1, the Italian champions were happy with taking their chances in the second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu. After Real Madrid’s failed corner, however, Juventus saw the opportunity to tip the scales in their favour and took the bull by the horns. Within ten seconds, Tevez had burst past his man and exploited the acres of space afforded to him. Dani Carvajal subsequently took him down in the box and gifted the Turin giants a penalty shot that was later converted. This game confirmed a recent trend that began showing in big games for Juventus. They were just beginning to add counter-attacking football to their wide arsenal.

Going into next season, it will be crucial for Juventus to re-evolve their tactics. When Conte resigned, the bianconeri went from extreme pressing to intricate, possession based football. Now, with players that were so crucial to this system gone, Allegri has a complete different set of players at his disposal. Towards the end of last season and in recent friendlies, he has shown his desire to set up his team to bunker themselves in and hit the opponent on the counter. Given the qualities of Alvaro Morata and Paulo Dybala, this should, in theory, work. Also, what better way to instill this type of football than with a striker like Mandžukić leading the line? The Croatian is both lethal in front of goal and is ready to sacrifice himself for the good of the team. With Morata drifting wide on the left, there will be space for Dybala and Mandžukić to exploit.

In the midfield, the absences of Pirlo and Vidal cannot be understated. For one, Juventus will no longer have a point of reference at the heart of the midfield they can turn to. Without the Chilean,on the other hand, the bianconeri do not have a player that can hassle and harry the opposition with similar efficiency. As a result of this, the dynamic midfield trio of Claudio Marchisio, Sami Khedira and Paul Pogba will likely play in a completely different system. Keeping the ball for the majority of the game is definitely something they are capable of but their skill-sets are not really suited to this style of football. Instead, Allegri would be wise to dedicate his players energies to mastering the art of counter attacking football. In the past, the manager has demonstrated his tactical flexibility so this shouldn’t pose much of a problem. While there will be undoubtedly countless story-lines going into the new season, Juventus’ rebirth will certainly be one of the most interesting ones to keep an eye on.

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