The Juventus environment has been revitalized and with Spalletti there is a new atmosphere. After a year and a half of difficulties and problems, there may be a turning point
If it is true that the great teams, or in any case the winning teams, are those who know how to take the three points even when they don’t play well, or when they really don’t deserve it, then the match in Pisa tells us that Juve is on the right track to becoming dangerous even in the race for the Scudetto. Because it’s bad for an hour, it risks falling at least twice – crossbar and post of the Tuscans between the two halves – then it grows just enough to go on to score the winning goals (the first with a double rebound, obviously) when Spalletti brings in some freshness, especially Zhegrova and Miretti.
patience and luck
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Maestro Sacchi would say: “Occ, patience and bus de cul”, his recipe for winning. Yes: eye, patience and luck. Juve lacked none of this. And now it’s up there, because if you look at the ranking you almost don’t believe it when you think back to what the Juventus world has been through in the last eighteen months. Attention: Juve is up there, one point behind first place Inter, but we must not forget that the Nerazzurri have played two games less, as have Milan and Napoli, and that already today these teams can pull ahead of the Bianconeri again (while also waiting to play the recoveries of the matches postponed for the Super Cup). But the visual effect still has a very significant meaning, because it conveys the feeling that Spalletti has managed to change something fundamental within Juve. In this year and a half nothing has worked in those parts, not even what seemed like it had to go well, or in any case couldn’t go that badly. Motta came from the Bologna shows, Giuntoli from the Napoli scudetto, Koopmeiners from Atalanta’s Europa League, David from the Lille goals, just to name a few random cases.
negative spiral
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In Turin they were all sucked into a vortex of negativity that undermined any certainty about them. As if Juve – historically capable of transforming even players who didn’t seem phenomenal elsewhere into champions – had become its opposite: you arrive as a star and you become sagging. It is not certain that the negative effect has ended, but now for the first time since the summer of 2024 there is a different atmosphere. Now, since we’re talking about the rankings, and given that Juve is one point away from the top, it becomes inevitable to ask ourselves and ask a question: but can the Bianconeri really win the Scudetto? The answer passes first of all through a consideration of the absolute values of the competing teams. Inter and Napoli seem stronger and more complete than the Bianconeri to us, with higher quality squads in the starters and backups; Milan are not as competitive, not as much as Chivu and Conte’s groups, but they have the advantage of being able to only think about the championship; Rome is not too far away. However, all this does not mean that Juve cannot and should not try, as Spalletti himself said as soon as he arrived in Turin: let’s look at the maximum goal. Because the best don’t always win, as some of the latest Serie A championships have said.
in January
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Because the January transfer market is coming and could help the Bianconeri fill at least some gaps. And because, if we look at the calendar, in the next four days Juve will always play as favourites: Lecce, Sassuolo, Cremonese and Cagliari, between now and 17 January, offer the possibility of winning a quantity of points useful for warming up Juventus’ ambitions. Also because in this same period some of the other top teams will have commitments of different, much higher importance. Inter, for example, will find Atalanta and Bologna before Napoli, who in turn will have to visit Lazio and then will meet the current league leaders in the key clash on January 11th. In short, Spalletti has the margins to believe in it and to try: this championship without owners has waited for Juve for almost the entire first round and now they find themselves up there. Different, new and (maybe) dangerous.
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