Juventus went into the international break last month with a wave of momentum, having dismantled NEC Nijmegen and throttled Atalanta in their final two games at a combined score of 7-0. There was hope that after the new, extended break, they’d be able to continue that momentum as a major section of the season got underway.
Unfortunately, they couldn’t do that. Whether it was the longer nature of the break, or simply the fact that the club’s two biggest issues—playing down to competition and the inability
to break down a low block—came into play yet again, the Bianconeri suffered in their away matchup with Cagliari. Juve dominated the game statistically, keeping more than 70 percent of possession and outshooting the Isolani 22-4, but the home side took the lead in the 20th minute through the red-hot Daniele Maldini and held it for an hour before Randal Kolo Muani managed to tie the score with 10 minutes remaining.
All the normal issues were there: Juve once again conceded a goal on the first shot on target that they faced, and they moved the ball so painfully slowly that it was impossible to generate dangerous chances against Cagliari’s firmly parked bus. This was a game that should’ve ended in a Bianconeri victory, but instead ended in a disappointing 1-1 draw because the team simply couldn’t muster up the quality in the attacking third to get the ball into the goal a second time. It’s something that is going to have to be dealt with as October’s important sequence of games arrives.
How did everyone do on the pitch at the Unipol Domus? Let’s take a closer look.
GUGLIELMO VICARIO – 5.5. I’m in the minority on this, but I believe Vicario could have done better with Maldini’s goal. While he is by no means alone in carrying the responsibility for it, Maldini was forced to shoot with his trailing foot and didn’t get a whole ton of power onto it, and Vicario letting it slip under his arm wasn’t a great look to me. He did make a great flying save on a long-range rocket from Harry Winks and made a neat save or two in the second half on shots that were ultimately nullified by the offside flag, but the sight of the ball squirming its way under him just didn’t sit right with me.
PIERRE KALULU – 5.5. Kalulu has been less than the automatic success he’s been in his prior two seasons, and it makes me wonder whether the immense workload that he’s shouldered is finally catching up to him a little bit. He co-led the team in tackles, but he let Maldini have too much room early in the attack that led to his goal, and his attacking contribution left a lot to be desired, with none of his 6 crosses were remotely accurate.
BREMER – 6. Unfortunate to have Maldini’s shot bounce off him and right to Paul Mendy, who led Maldini back in for the goal. But he made three tackles and a team-high three clearances—a number that goes to show just how much of this game was played in Cagliari’s side of the field.
JHON LUCUMÍ – 6. Completed 96.9 percent of his passes and didn’t make any serious mistakes in defense.
ZEKI ÇELIK – 6. Co-leader in tackles (4) and dribbles (2) and tacked on a key pass. Pretty impressive that he was able to play with the quality he did after playing every minute of Türkiye’s international break.
DOUGLAS LUIZ – 6. Had a bunch of long-range shots blocked, but made up for it with some good defensive play, making three tackles and generally keeping Cagliari from being able to get out of their own half on anything but the occasional counter.
PAPE MATAR SARR – 6.5. Made three tackles and added three key passes, along with a stellar 97.1 percent completion rate. He’s carving out a place in the midfield right now.
FRANCISCO CONCEIÇÃO – 5. Unfortunately was at his most predictable. Couldn’t break down Adam Obert in front of him for long stretches, and simply didn’t produce anything on the Juev right.
WESTON McKENNIE – 5.5. Made three key passes but didn’t seem positionally in sync with a lot of the other attackers. Booked for a completely fair challenge midway through the first half.
NICO GONZÁLEZ – 5.5. Had a pair of key passes and was the one who finally put a shot on target for the first time in first-half stoppages, but also made some really bad giveaways and only completed 75 percent of his passes. Ticked himself up half a point with a good defensive effort from the front, making two tackles and helping to keep Cagliari penned in.
RANDAL KOLO MUANI – 6. Struggled as the lone striker but was far better when Nick Woltemade came onto the field and he was able to play off him more. Ended the game with two key passes, two dribbles, and the equalizing goal, although he could’ve done better a few minutes later when he really ought to have won the game, and his overall decision-making was suspect. Still a little less confident than he could be.
SUBS
KERIM ALAJBEGOVIC – 7. Led the team with four key passes in only 45 minutes, and that was with most of the attacking flow going through the right side. The right kind of player for this match.
EDON ZHEGROVA – 6.5. Took a team-high six shots (five on target) in just 45 minutes and was denied by Caprile on a couple of occasions. Good dribbles, although he wasn’t much of a provider for the rest of the team.
NICK WOLTEMADE – 5.5. Only had one shot, a header off of Kolo Muani’s crossbar shot that was easily saved, but his movement served as a point of gravity that allowed Kolo Muani to actually have room to operate. Needs to do that and produce with the ball as well.
ANDREA CAMBIASO – 5.5. Made a couple of odd decisions but at least retreated to stop any danger from it. Took one shot trying to catch Caprile out at the near post.
TEUN KOOPMEINERS – NR. Hardly had an effect after coming on in the wake of the equalizer.
MANAGER ANALYSIS
This week, I advocated for a more permanent switch to the 3-4-2-1 formation that Luciano Spalletti used in the last two games before the break. I think this game was an exhibit for why I made that argument.
I felt like the 4-2-3-1 that Spalletti employed in Sardinia was far too static. Conceição planted himself on the wing to try to take on Oberg, Gonzalez and McKennie were a bit more dynamic in terms of positioning but often still way too far away from Kolo Muani to be able to let him play off him in any meaningful way. The result was a slow and plodding attack that shifted the ball from one side to the other waiting for an opening that would only come if one of the defenders fell down of his own accord. Everyone was too far away from each other, and Cagliari just planted themselves in the spaces in between and waited.
Spalletti should get credit for recognizing that change was needed and going big with a double switch at halftime. Zhegrova and Alajbegovic brought with them enough unpredictability to start putting Cagliari’s defenders on skates a little bit, and the addition of Woltemade for González finally gave Kolo Muani someone that could pull defenders away from him and give him the room to move in between them, which is how he plays his best game.
All of this is, I believe, something that a 3-4-2-1—specifically the “2-1” part—can provide far easier than a 4-2-3-1, especially against a bus that was so thoroughly parked as this one. Spalletti needs to either switch over to the three-man system, or adjust the 4-2-3-1 to give the attackers more ability to play with each other as opposed to around each other.
LOOKING AHEAD
Juve’s Europa League campaign continues on Thursday when they travel to Spain to face Celta Vigo. After that, surprise co-leaders Lazio heads to the Allianz Stadium, before welcoming Rennes and then heading south to Lecce.
