Despite being by far the strongest team on the peninsula in recent years, the Bianconeri have often underwhelmed in Europe’s top competition.
It was no different for Juventus this year in the UEFA Champions League, as they made hard work of a relatively easy group consisting of Atletico Madrid, Olympiakos and Malmo.
Observers tend to believe that because they have it so easy domestically in Serie A, Juventus tend to relax in Europe, and get caught off-guard by the intensity of their opponents.
No matter which way you spin it, the sorry decline of traditional powerhouses AC Milan and Inter have affected the competitiveness of the league. Having the two Milanese giants pushing the Bianconeri in the Serie A, along with Napoli and Roma would keep Juventus on their toes and ready for each battle.
The matches against AC Milan and Inter used to be affairs of a huge magnitude that would have major repercussions for both sides. Both sets of fans would look for the match first up, when the schedules are released annually, and the games would be tense affairs. Now, they are always one-sided affairs that are bossed at a canter by the three-time Scudetto champions.
If either the Nerazzurri or the Rossoneri were to scrape a point, it would not to keep chase with the leading pack, but more to get them further away from the relegation pack.
There’s no more urgency or resolve that Juventus have to break through and as such no intensity is needed, which hurts them when they have to face continental sides in the Champions League.
Roma have been the club to take the mantle of providing Juventus with strong competition in the last two seasons, but even they have been doing their best in recent months to allow Juventus to stroll to another Scudetto. Juventus must be challenged regularly at domestic level if they are to lift their game when needed in Europe.
English teams doing so well in recent years have coincided with a hugely competitive league where teams such as Manchester United, Chelsea, Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool all have the capability to muster title challenges against one another and push each other to the limits.
Increased competition will yield better performances.
The lack of financial power the league now boasts of in comparison to its major rivals’ means that Italian clubs must be more prudent with their recruitment than ever before.
The days of splashing the big bucks on lavish new signings are over and the fact that none of the other elite clubs in Italy has a successful model or plan when it comes to recruitment, means that they get left even further behind.
For Juventus to become competitive in Europe, and for the Serie A to reclaim its rightful spot amongst the world’s best leagues once again, then the whole of the league must improve.
The fact that Juventus have lost just eight games in the past four Serie A seasons tells you that not enough teams are doing enough to reach their expected standard.
