A hapless Juventus played out a 2-2 draw at home to extinguish what faint flicker of hope was remaining in the heart of the tifosi for Champion’s League Qualification. For the neutral, this match had the most comically entertaining second half we saw in Serie A this season; for Juventus fans though it was yet another example of the now familiar mental fragility that has plagued the team all year.
Mister Delneri opted for a straight 4-4-2 formation, with Marchisio and Aquilani manning the central midfield in the absence of the injured Felipe Melo. The match started well for Juve, with the home side looking to attack and Chievo sitting back and looking to hit on the break, especially against the light weight central midfield pairing. However, the very fact that Melo was not playing meant tactically the bianconeri midfield axis was slightly higher, providing more attacking verve, but being more susceptible to counters.
Juventus opened the scoring through a trademark unstoppable penalty by Del Piero, awarded for a very soft foul on Pepe. The captain was in fine form – even at 36 he is still the most talented player in the team, and his workrate would put players half his age to shame. Juventus managed to create a number of opportunities but failed to make any of them count, the most glaring miss being the one by Alberto Aquilani, and were the better team by far as the half drew to a close.
The second half started very much like the first, and very soon a delightful Matri finish to a gorgeous Del Piero through ball seemed to have put the final nail to the Chievo coffin. However, the madness was just starting.
Chievo possess in their ranks one of these players I personally admire for no rhyme or reason – a certain Sergio Pellissier who has achieved a doctorate in tormenting Juventus. Chievo proceeded to score two goals in two minutes, with Pellissier being involved in both of them. The goals themselves were riddled with individual errors, but it was only a taste of what was to come.
Throwing caution to the wind, Juventus started attacking, coming desperately close to claiming the winner several times. Chievo also countered with gutso, with one surreal occassion causing buffon to come up near the halfway line to clear the ball, missing it, and then Chievo failing to score in front of a goal protected only by Marchisio, from inside the box!
Luca Toni was brought in as a desperate measure, and he promptly struck the post with a header. It became a helter-skelter affair, with a total breakdown of all team-organisation – more befitting an amateur Sunday league game than the top flight of Calcio. It was hugely entertaining for the neutral and the casual viewer, but an atrocity for the purists and a punishment for the Juventus fans. The match ended 2-2, and underlining another mediocre season for Juventus in which the club failed to reach any of their sporting objectives.
Long time viewers of football will know that there are rarely any huge tactical innovations at these closing games of the season. Most often, these last few games present a microcosm of how the entire season went for a team – highlighting and exaggerating both the positives and the negatives. As such, this “moment of madness” was not surprising – Juventus has lost far too many points in the past year to teams from the lower tables due to their inability to close out a game.
So, 7th in the league, Europa League qualification in doubt, out of all the cup competitions – some team you have created Mister Delneri and Signori Marotta.
The White
1. Del Piero – can he be any more amazing?
2. A much improved performance from Krasic. He looked confident, delivered some nice crosses and helped out defensively. A far cry from the player we had seen at the start of the season, but a huge improvement from his recent performances.
3. If only we had Matri from the start of the season – a very good striker indeed, with the potential to be genuinely world class.
The Black
1. How can a team of supposedly professional athletes be so fragile mentally? How can they do the same mistakes again and again and again? The lack of on pitch leaders is frightening. The biggest reason for this result is the lack of focus of the players on the pitch.
2. Delneri cannot escape blame for this mental fragility – it’s all very nice to hear the players singing paeans to the Mister, but actions speak louder than words. The sword hangs over the coach, and deservedly so.
3. One look at the bench told the sad story of how much the club has declined – not a single difference maker on the bench (not that there were many on the pitch too).
4. Why do we keep playing Motta? It is a riddle that will stump the Sphinx.
Ratings
Buffon – 5
Motta – 4.5
Barzagli – 5
Chellini – 4
Grosso – 5.5
Marchisio – 6
Aquilani – 5
Krasic – 6.5
Pepe – 5.5
Del Piero – 7.5
Matri – 6.5
Toni – 6
Follow Ratul on Twitter
Join Forza Italian Football on Twitter and Facebook.
