After a promising start to the campaign, Juventus have been encountering some difficulties over the past few weeks.
The Bianconeri suffered a surprising first loss of the season when they failed to put down Stuttgart at home in their most recent Champions League contest. And while the club remains undefeated in Serie A, their path has been tainted by six draws out of 10 fixtures, leaving them seven points adrift of league leaders Napoli.
Therefore, La Gazzetta dello Sport journalist Giovanni Albanese calls for Juventus and Motta to take immediate action to salvage the campaign before it’s too late.
Albanese highlights five issues that have been haunting the Bianconeri, especially in recent weeks.
First, the journalist urges Motta to rotate his starting lineup more often, as the team appeared tired both physically and mentally in the midweek contest against Parma. The Bianconeri were struggling to cope with the Crociati’s pacey young players, thus settling for a 2-2 draw.
Second, Juventus must find a solution to their injury woes. While suffering knocks (like Teun Koopmeiners’ fractured rib) remains unavoidable, the amount of muscle problems that Motta’s men sustained thus far this season has been worrisome.
As for the third point, Albanese tackles what is arguably the most pressing issue for the club at the moment: The leaky defense. Since Gleison Bremer’s ACL injury, Juventus have shipped in 10 goals in six matches after only allowing a single goal in their first seven fixtures.
The journalist then talks about the squad management which has been far from perfect. Andrea Cambiaso even admitted that the players were a bit lazy against Parma. This suggests that the coach must improve his management skills and find new means to recharge a young squad that lacks experience.
Finally, Motta must attempt to dispel the tactical confusion. While the team is showing promising signs at times, there are other occasions when they appear to be short of ideas.