Throughout history the balance of power shifts periodically. Football is no exception in this matter. The Italian Serie A season so far has created a lot of things to talk about. But undoubtedly, the major topic is the dominance of Juventus in the top flight. They have surprised everyone, including themselves with their incredible performance.
Ten victories, four draws and zero defeats are very much in contrast to the previous seasons of Claudio Ranieri, Ciro Ferrara and Luigi Delneri. People are still quiet because the last three seasons have shown that Juventus can lose their feet after December. But one thing everyone must acknowledge is the balance of power shifting towards Turin for the near future.
After five years of Inter’s dominance in calcio ( and one year in Europe ), many thought and still believe that Milan is the next superpower would come from. The Roma takeover by the Americans and Napoli’s fantastic rise has many thinking that those will become the dominant team, however, there are numerous factors to suggest that Juventus is here to stay regardless of whether they will win the Scudetto of finish fifth.
JUVENTUS ARE THE BIGGEST CLUB IN ITALY
Foreign pundits often compare the situation of Juventus to that of Liverpool. But the reality is, they are completely wrong. Juventus is the biggest football club in Italy. It has the most fans. It also has a very rich history that can’t be matched in the near future. People even come from Switzerland and France to watch home games in Turin.
Like it or not, Juventus is a major factor accounting for the glorious history of the Azzurri. In short, calcio cannot live without Juventus. The global appeal of the club is also huge in some countries. In Iran and Indonesia, many of their fans have endured the painful years since 2006 just to follow their club.
Thus Juventus is healthy financially despite their current situation. They always attract most viewers on TV in Italy. This gives them ability to create a winning team from scratch. They tried to do that on several occasions with the acquisition of the likes of Diego, Felipe Melo, Amauri and others but it didn’t seem to work out. Now, it seems to be working.
World class players will always be attracted to Juventus. Edin Dzeko, Milos Krasic are among the players who openly spoke of their desire to join Juventus more than any other club, despite Juventus not even participating in the Champions League.
JUVENTUS STADIUM
In Italy, so much hype was around the 41,000o seater Juventus stadium. But the structure has lived to its expectations. It has attracted full crowds in all Serie A games so far. But it has also become a fortress. Juventus still remain unbeaten at home. It has acted as a catalyst for change.
On a broader perspective however, having a modern stadium, Juventus is the only Italian club capable of competing with its European peers financially. In a few years time, it will be level with the likes of Arsenal and Chelsea in terms of revenue. This will put it ahead of it ahead of its Italian rivals. ( Well, at least theoretically ).
FANTASTIC TEAM
The current Juventus squad is a fantastic team. While it lacks a player like Ronaldo, Messi, or Ibrahimovic, it is a very strong unit. Andrea Pirlo has settled well in the club. Gianluigi Buffon is still doing his best in goal while Giorgio Chiellini and Claudio Marchisio are increasingly becoming pillars for the team. Alessandro Matri has shown that he can deliver the goals. While lacking the personal talent of Krasic and Elia, Simone Pepe has proved to be important for the team with his work rate and consistency. The good thing for Juve is that many of these players can still play like this for a few years to come.
The team is still short of personnel in a few areas, such as left back. Nevertheless, qualification for the Champions League will give them some extra cash to add quality to the team.
ANTONIO CONTE
There is no doubt about the role played by this man in Juve’s transformation. His strict ( and sometimes harsh ) way of doing things has changed a team that was reckless to one cohesive unit. Whether he will stay for long or not, his role at the club is significant. Juventus now play like a team that wants to win everything. He still needs to be given time to prove what he can do with the team. Nevertheless he is the right man to lead Juventus to where they belong.
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