When the final 26-man squads were announced prior to Euro 2020, Juventus were amongst the most represented clubs (4th to be specific) with 12 players present in the tournament.
But whilst some of the Bianconeri stars were expected to lead their nations towards the last stages of the competition, most of our men have already been sent home.
The club’s biggest two stars – Cristiano Ronaldo and Matthijs de Ligt – have been knocked out from the round of 16 at the hands of Belgium and Czech Republic respectively.
Moreover, Adrien Rabiot’s France were shocked by their Swiss neighbors at the stage of the competition, as it is the case for Dejan Kulusevski and Sweden, as well as Aaron Ramsey and his Welsh teammates.
As for Merih Demiral and Wojciech Szczesny, they had already left the Euros after finishing at the bottom of their groups.
As fate has it, Spain’s Alvaro Morata is still going strong in the competition, despite being the player who received more criticism and abuse than any other.
Besides the striker, the Italian block (Giorgio Chiellini, Leonardo Bonucci, Federico Chiesa and Federico Bernardeschi) remains standing.
So what to make of the early elimination of the majority of the nations that contained representatives from the Old Lady?
On one hand, this could be a blessing in disguise, as it would allow the players who went home two weeks prior to the conclusion of Euro 2020 extra days of rest.
Following the grueling schedule that the players had to endure since the restart of football in May 2020, the opportunity to recharge batteries could be crucial for the players.
But on the flip side, the morale of the stars could be scarred after some disappointing displays at one of the biggest stages of the sport.
Additionally, these early eliminations could also have an indirect impact on the club’s financial state, as some of the players might have had their transfer values decreased.
At the end of the day, it will be a matter of case per case to determine how every player was effected from the underwhelming exit.
If Ronaldo ends up staying at the club, we can expect him to be re-energized and eager to go again, as his elimination would do little to affect his gigantic self-confidence.
On the other hand, one would be more worried about the younger stars, like de Ligt, who was the main culprit in Netherlands exit following his deliberate handball, or Merih Demiral who scored the first goal of the tournament in his own net.
In the end, we can only wait and see, whilst hoping that the positives will outweigh the negatives.
very much a blessing. let`s get to work early, find our feet and our chemistry!!