April was a month in which Juventus was so, so close to perfection.
The Bianconeri played four games, conceded zero goals, scored five, and earned maximum points in all but one game. Even though it has been another disappointing season, ending it with such momentum is crucial for ensuring that next season will not be another wasted one.
It gives us hope that we have something to build on. Given that we have won so little silverware lately, what else do we have but hope?
So, let’s look back at the penultimate
month of the season, one that gave me as much hope for this team as the month of January did.
Hope
As much as I hate (footballing) clichés, it was a game of two halves in the first game of the month against Genoa. We were completely dominant in the first half and took a deserved two-goal lead thanks to goals from Gleison Bremer and Weston McKennie. The first goal came after a bit of head tennis from a corner kick resulted in Bremer blasting the ball into goal after latching onto a flicked header from his fellow defender Lloyd Kelly. The second goal came after a slick counterattack led by the speedy Francisco Conceição, who laid the ball off to McKennie to finish in the far corner.
The game completely changed in the second half. Besides Jonathan David’s cracking strike against the post, Genoa dominated proceedings as the Bianconeri completely took their foot off the gas. The visitors won a penalty kick after a foul by Bremer was first judged to be outside the box but a VAR review confirmed it was narrowly inside the area. Michele Di Gregorio, who came on in half-time to replace the injured Mattia Perin, not only brilliantly saved the resulting penalty from Aarón Caricol but he also quickly got up and saved the rebound. On paper, it looked like a comfortable 2-0 victory but it could have easily gone wrong in the second half.
A crucial away match against Atalanta was up next. Then again, at this stage of the season every game is a final to secure Champions League qualification for next season. Juventus executed a corto muso masterclass as we scored a wonderfully ugly goal in the 48th minute through Jeremie Boga and then… basically defended for the remainder of the game. Atalanta had plenty of shots (16 to 6) but rarely gave Di Gregorio much work to do in goal (3 shots on target). A massive 1-0 victory and one step closer to the Champions League!
What a wonderful month it was for our defense. In the next game, at home to Bologna, we secured our third consecutive clean sheet and victory. David glanced in a tidy header in the second minute from a great Pierre Kalulu cross and the Bianconeri completely dominated from there. However, it seemed like we were falling into the same trap that we have fallen into so frequently this season: failing to kill off games. Thankfully, Thuram made sure that the game was well and truly over when, surrounded by three Bologna defenders, he headed in a cross from Locatelli past goalkeeper Federico Ravaglia. Bologna almost staged a late comeback when Jonathan Rowe slammed a shot against the outside of the post after an hour played but everyone in the stadium breathed a huge sigh of relief when the ball went away from goal. Final score: 2-0
We ended the month with a match that was so low in action that I’m impressed Sam managed to write a full review for it. We played a goalless draw against a faltering AC Milan who went from fighting for the title to nervously defending their spot in the top 4. The biggest chances came from Rabiot, who blasted a fierce shot straight at Di Gregorio from the edge of the box, and Alexis Saelemaekers, who crashed a shot against the crossbar after a nice passing move from Milan. The Bianconeri’s best chances came from the livewire Conceição, who played so well that Allegri substituted Davide Bartesaghi, who simply couldn’t handle the Portuguese winger and was booked after 38 minutes, at halftime for Pervis Estupiñán, who then also received a yellow card in the second half! Final score: 0-0.
Juventus Women
Just two games to report for Juventus Women in April. First, Juve beat Fiorentina 2-1 in a hard-fought away game. Lindsey Thomas scored a header at the far-post after a great cross from Amalie Vangsgaard. But Fiorentina equalized just before halftime through a goal from Iris Omarsdottir. We almost regained the lead in first-half stoppage time but Madelen Janogy cleared Ana Capeta’s header off the goal line. Salvai scored the winning goal in the 58th minute when she diverted a shot from Lia Walti into goal following a corner kick.
Unfortunately, we fell to a 1-0 home loss against Roma in the month’s other game. The goal came in the second half when Giulia Dragoni beat goalkeeper Larissa Rusek. The Bianoncere fought hard but the closest we came to the equalizer was when Barbara Bonansea hit the crossbar in the second half.
Back to Basics
Defense was the name of the game last month. We conceded not one, not two but … zero goals in April. Once again, it brings us back to a popular discussion of the last few seasons: is Juventus better off playing a more “progressive”, “modern” style of football that emphasizes attack more or are we best positioned to stick to what we have traditionally done best, namely to defend first and score later?
As you all know, I used to be in the first camp. After the immensely disappointing end to the Allegri 2.0 era, I thought it was time to evolve and move with the times. But for a variety of reasons, it just hasn’t worked out and, more importantly, not felt like the true Juventus.
Strangely enough, we’ve come closer to playing “sexy” football when not trying to do so. At the time of writing, we are the third-highest goalscoring team (Inter 80, Como 59, Juventus 57) and have the joint-third best defense (Milan 27, Como 28, Juventus and Roma 29) of the league. We’ve scored a good amount of goals (despite the number of wasted chances we have) and have tightened up the defense significantly at the same time. Perhaps it shows that you can (almost) have it all. You can be a team that wants to attack and score but also one that puts defense first.
A month like this — one in which we didn’t concede a single goal — brings more joy to my heart than anything. It shows me that this is the most natural fit for this club. It is the closest to our true DNA: to make defending as joyful as attacking.
Scandal
I’ll close with a thoroughly depressing bit of news that I’m sure everyone has heard about. One of the most highly esteemed referees in Italy, Gianluca Rocchi, has suspended himself after being accused of committing sporting fraud. Andrea Gervasoni, the VAR supervisor, is also under investigation.
As I mentioned in a recent podcast episode, it’s difficult to say much about this case given that there are few definitive facts publicly disclosed at the moment. The problem, however, is that one can argue that the truth at this point doesn’t even matter. What people think the truth is matters.
And what do most people (likely) think the truth is? For fans and followers of Italian football, it seems that people think that this is confirmation of what they always thought about refereeing in Italy. Namely, that it has always been biased, low quality, and perhaps even corrupt.
For those who are fans of football but don’t know much about Italian football, it is likewise a confirmation of their existing beliefs; refereeing corruption is a feature, rather than a bug of calcio.
As a result, I would argue that whatever the outcome of the trial/investigation might be, it’s too late to change anyone’s mind about Italy, Italian football, and referees in Italy. The reputational damage has already been done. A dark time in calcio, both on and off the pitch, becomes even darker.
