Shocker that the goalkeeper would post this video, huh?

You be quiet. It’s the international break and all these bogus transfer rumors make my head want to explode because they’re so stupid.

And in case you missed it, the Azzurri rolled out some new unis today.

A little music to get the party started.

More than a week of inactivity can take a toll on an athlete’s cardio-vascular level, especially when their diets around the holidays aren’t exactly ideal. However there’ll be plenty of time to shake off the “rust” before January 6th. Speaking of rust, yesterday also marked the re-introduction of two familiar faces within the bianconeri camp as goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon and forward Amauri returned to the practice pitch after their respective injuries.

The number one is back in black and white group, for the first time after back surgery. After months of physiotherapy and personal training this morning, Gigi has worked with Storari, Manninger and Constantine, the orders of the goalkeeper coach Claudio Filippi. Certainly not the ideal day for a return, with the fields of Vinovo whitened by the frost in the morning, the hard ground on the edge of ice and the thermometer at 11 degrees from -3 in the morning. But Buffon could not wait to come back, and worked tirelessly.

There’s something so calming about having Gigi between the sticks that definitely goes beyond his supernatural shot blocking abilities. Like many good goalkeepers he’s very vocal during the game, but Buffon has at least two other unique qualities that make him as great as he his. For one, he prefers to keep the game moving quickly and distributes short passes often to maintain possession, and two, he’s always got a huge smile on his face and treats everyone with humility and respect; just don’t mistaken his kindness for weakness.

Now of course we’ll have to see how the Superman-Storari-Manninger relationship plays out in the coming weeks as the winter silly-season officially opens on January 3rd, with Marco rumoured to be requesting first team football in 2011. While on the topic of transfer rumours, Amauri returned to the field this morning to work separately with a trainer in front of the eyes of Del Neri and Marotta, I believe the newest Gilardino-for-Amauri gossip now includes a cash transfer of €10 million.

The Amauri situation is disappointingly simple; he’s garbage. For a real shot at the Scudetto come April and May, there should be no questions about your prima punta scoring goals alongside others on your team. Take Milan’s Ibrahimovic for example who has nine goals thus far beside Robinho and Pato at six a piece. Or take Napoli’s Cavani who has ten goals already with Hamsik sitting at seven. Finally there’s Palermo’s Pastore and Ilicic, who are doing quite well with seven goals each.

My point is this, it would be foolish to think we should rely on Quagliarella to score goals like a machine, as he’s been doing, throughout all of next year and down the stretch to make up for an impotent prima punta. The term itself, ‘prima’ meaning first, and ‘punta’ meaning tip or point, describes how important that role is in a team’s attack. Translation, Juventus don’t have a valid first point of attack. We all saw the game against Fiorentina right? No one needs to talk about what happens when Krasic and Quagliarella are double-teamed (although I did here).

I know this point has been beaten to death by many a post and podcast, but Juventus truly needs a viable prima punta option ahead of Krasic and it looks like Iaquinta doesn’t fit the bill either. In short, if we don’t make a move for some kind of Amauri replacement in January, we shouldn’t be thinking about the Scudetto even if we’re atop the standings come February. The board’s objective will be clear; Champions League qualification. Not that there’s anything wrong with that either. But if the opportunity presents itself for some kind of player swap or loan deal without breaking the bank this January, I’m sure Marotta will pull the trigger.

IERI… OGGI… DOMANI… SEMPRE JUVE!!!

On behalf of the Juventus Offside, a very warm “thank you” to Cesena for gifting the game to us. Given our injury situation, our still rather delicate morale, we needed a win, and 3-1 suffices nicely in a game where we have an 18-year old kid playing center-back alongside a still rather inexperienced center-back. Of course, Cesena didn’t start out that nicely, they took the lead after 11 minutes after our defense was generally caught napping. But a penalty (and yellow card) from Pellegrino put us back on track, and when Pellegrino was sent off for a crappy hack on Pepe, the game was over. Cesena folded up shop, attempted to play 10 9 men behind the ball, and let us dictate.

So in that sense, maybe this isn’t a victory we should celebrate. But I’m going to, you know what? The injury situation is bad enough, and that’s two wins in a row in Serie A, something we haven’t done yet this season. And a decent motivation boost like Milan, that despite all the injuries and reasons we should be drawing to inferior teams, we’re still coming up with the points. We need to carry that to Brescia, and do the same, unlike Inter who dropped 2 points at home in a similar injury crisis. Bring it on, Zebina and co.

LE PAGELLE:

Storari: 6- Marco had to do nothing for most of the game, other than pick the ball out of the net. And then made a good save about an hour later. Remains plenty attentive even when there’s not much going on, signs of being very mature.

Motta: 6- Wasn’t totally impressed with the performance, he struggled real bad in the beginning with Giaccherini, but grew a bit more into the match. An average performance, let’s hope he grows with the plenty of time he’ll be getting.
Sorensen: 6- Nerves clearly got to him in the first 15 minutes of the match, which is totally understandable for an 18-year old making his top flight debut. After that, Bonucci and his formed a capable partnership.
Bonucci: 6- Still plays around with the ball too much on occasion. We all wondered if Bonucci would get enough playing time this season, but only 2 months into the season, he’s the most experienced central defender! Nutty.
Grosso: 6- Kept Jimenez onside for the goal, but a very impressive performance considering he hasn’t played in 6 months. Capped with a great tackle to win possession for the 3rd goal. I still want him gone in January.

Marchisio: 7- A real dynamic performance from the future captain, switching wings, playing central, winning the ball back, defending the flank as a quasi-terzino, just a real tactically brilliant game from him. Covered the flanks when players moved up, switched with Pepe, and crossed a delicious ball in for Quagliarella to head into the net.
Sissoko: 5.5- Could have been sent off during the match, it was another “Groan Momo” kind of games. Still yet to get into top form, but frankly this game is never going to be one he’s going to make his mark in. When we’re playing a team that parks the bus, Momo isn’t going to unlock them. And defensively, there’s much less required.
Aquilani: 6.5- Another class performance from Albertino, excellent vision and consistent passing, he also displayed his new-found skill at defending when Cesena were attempting to get back to a 2-2.
Pepe: 6- Offered a typical Pepe performance- ran a lot, covered his wings for the forward runs of Motta/Grosso depending on what flank he is. I think the confusion of moving around is messing with him a bit, he’s gone from playing up top in a 4-3-3 for Italy, then midfield, then a fullback against Milan, back to midfield today. On SKY they mentioned “it all came apart for Pepe in the last 20 yards.” Got Pellegrino sent off, though, which killed the game more than any goal would have.

Del Piero: 7- Two days before his 36th birthday, Alex started the match having played 90minutes just a few days ago. The conventional wisdom (which I also have espoused) is that Del Piero cannot play two games in the same week. Yet again, he proves us wrong, with an excellent game just after playing the full Salzburg game. Always creative, always looking to supply his teammates with passes, and always looking at the goal. Class is permanent.
Quagliarella: 6.5- Another great header to make it 2-1. I have to say, I questioned Quagliarella’s consistency and whether he’d be good enough for Juve, but 5 goals in 8 games in Serie A is evidence enough. He’s scoring, and that what counts. Got a little greedy later in the game, but on his form, why not have a few pops at goal?

Delneri: 6.5- Not an exemplary game from Juve, and ordinarily it would earn a 5.5 or 6. But given the injury problems we’re dealing with, GDN is managing this team very well.
Salihamidzic: 6- Like Grosso, he came on after a 6 month absence from professional football and performed admirably. Grosso needs to go, but Brazzo deserves to finish out the season as part of the team. Partly to woo Dzeko, perhaps, but he seriously deserves it. Nice little chipped cross to Iaquinta for the 3rd goal.
Iaquinta: 6.5- Another return from injury for Vincenzone, but while looking rusty again, he capped the night with a lovely goal to surely put the game away.
Melo: s.v.- Wasn’t match fit when he came on, and limped off. Good news is that scans have revealed that there’s no real damage.

Quagliarella and Del Piero are developing quite the relationship

Things I Think I Think:

#1- For Roberto’s minute-by-minute match summary, check it out here. He goes more into the actual gameplay of the match.

#2- What’s the Real Momo? As I discuss on “It Ain’t Over Till the Old Lady Sings” this week, Momo had a rough last year. He was pretty much injured the entire fall, and then dealt with a major family tragedy in the Spring as both his in-laws were killed in a car accident in France, and thus, he had 5 siblings-in-law all under 18 that moved in with him and his wife. To that end, Zaccheroni urged Juventus fans to write off his performances from last season, and give him a fresh start. The thing is, he was pretty average back in 08-09 or so, too. Coming up on his 26th birthday, he likely won’t develop too many new skills, like distribution. Is he a good reserve CM? Sure. Can he grow from where he’s at? Yes, but as a reserve that’s less certain.

#3- Tactics, Tactics, Tactics: As the title implies, Cesena shot themselves in the foot with the penalty and sending off. Or we can say Pellegrino shot Cesena in the foot for both. Up until that point, it was a fairly even game, but down to 10-men, Cesena withdrew into their own half. Which favors players like Aquilani, Grosso, and Motta, who like to move forward and open up the other team, not so much for Pepe or Sissoko who don’t really have the magic to unlock the other teams bus. To this end, looking at the map of the average position, it’s quite clear. This was a game where Cesena defending, and Juve attacked. That’s why the players are fairly spread out, and much more advanced than say a much more compact game against Milan.

Blue is position against Milan, Red is against Cesena, just the Starting XI members

#4- Good to see you, Stephen: I always liked Appiah, he was a real talented player but unfortunately, some pretty devastating injuries has derailed what was a promising career. And I’ll always remember him fondly for this golazo against Cagliari, during the game that marked our 28th Scudetto. Did Moggi make that goal too?

#5- The passion and the grinta: Lars Pedersen has a wonderful write-up about the magic of supporting a team battling against the odds. Read it.

#6- The Stars Were Out in Torino:

C’E UNA STELLA IN CIELO CHE INDICA IL CAMMINO, FORZA JUVE VINCERE E IL TUO DESTINO!

The level of nostalgia might be at an all-time high for Manninger, but he’s aware that this will be an encounter against a team that although sit seventh domestically and are four games without a win in Europe, will try to get back into the running of qualification. Met by reporters at the airport on their way to Austria, Manninger answered a few questions. Here’s the gist of what our Austrian goalkeeper said:

‘… For me it will be a special game, but in the end those are three very important points. Salzburg are a very organized team, with a very technical coaching staff, that have lots of support from their fans. Granted they’ve started the domestic season poorly this year, but they certainly have the talent to cause us problems and on that day they’re looking to win as well. This will be an important match also for their team, staff, and fans, so it will be difficult for us in that sense. …’

Although as difficult as it may be, Juventus should theoretically be able to keep a clean sheet against a side that failed to score a goal in their last two European matches, especially considering our much improved backline. If Del Neri gets worried however, he only needs to pick up the phone and call ex-Bianconeri and ex-FC Salzburg coach, Giovanni Trapattoni, who I’m sure will be more than happy to answer any questions Luigi might have. Il Trap led Die Bullen to one and a half championships before he took the Ireland post in February 2008.

Tonight Del Neri will rest Milos Krasic, and tips Jorge Martinez to have a fabulous game on the right in his place. On the other side of the field, Pepe should get the nod in left midfield as Marchisio shifts back into his natural position with Sissoko in center midfield. Behind that midfield four, Marco Motta gets the job at right back, with Chiellini and Legrottaglie in the middle, and Paolo De Ceglie at left back.

Last but certainly not least, Del Neri will field Amauri and Del Piero in attack seeing as Fab-Quags and Iaquinta are both unavailable. Quite the debate went on about Amauri and his usefullness to the team recently, not to mention the various Giovinco conversations, so no doubt those who defended the number eleven’s quality will look to the multi-dimensionally challenged forward to put a few in the back of the net. Here are the official call-ups. Check the comments below for live streams, formations, and other last minute updates.

IERI… OGGI… DOMANI… SEMPRE JUVE!!!

Everyone recognize the guy on the left?

Welcome home, Pavel.

Obviously, I’m extremely pleased with what we’re seeing right now. The scorelines, the enthusiasm, the desire to win reminds me of the beginning of the 2007-2008 season. We had crushing victories like 5-1 over Livorno, or 5-0 over Palermo to announce our return, but also some nailbiting entertaining encounters like our 3-2 victory against Cagliari, which we replicated (1 better!) just a few weeks ago. We started the season with a fairly drab 1-0 loss to Bari, and then the floodgates opened on both ends. We all wondered whether the scoring or conceding would dry up first, and Delneri’s hard work drilling tactics into the squad seem to be paying off.

This isn’t to say we’re out of the woods, not by a long shot. There’s much work to do, but I can say as I said this summer, this team can qualify for the Champion’s League. It may not be a Scudetto-winning team, but that’s not our aim right now. We wanted a younger, hungrier, aggressive team with a fine tactician, and that’s what we have. Regarding the Scudetto, it is a dream. I do not want the team to focus on it, I like the way we are flying under the radar right now. If we come to late March, and are still in contention, that is when we talk about it. But it is too soon, there is much work to be done. (It reminds me of the NFL Baltimore Ravens in 2000. Their coach banned them from talking about the playoffs, and the team subsequently referred to it as “Festivus.” They ended up winning the Super Bowl, or “Festivus Maximus.”)

So no more talk of the Scudetto. It remains a pipe dream, as far as I’m concerned, but we can see that this team is certainly a contender for automatic qualification to the Champion’s League.

LE PAGELLE:

Storari: 7- The sign of a great keeper is not necessarily if he can make a string of super-saves, but if he can be decisive when it’s most important. Storari made a brilliant save at 1-0, preventing Lecce from getting into the game. While I think we would have won even if they scored, Storari came up big in the one real chance they had.

Grygera: 6- With Krasic ahead of him, it removes a lot of offensive responsibility from Grygera, and it allows him to play simple, to play defense. It’s no coincidence that Krasic’s emergence has come at the same time as Grygera’s started putting in solid shifts at fullback.
Chiellini: 6.5- Keyser Giorgio gave no quarter to any of Lecce’s strikers.
Bonucci: 6- Looked a little too casual at moments, but another clean sheet and another good relationship-building performance with Chiellini. Looks like they are improving day-by-day.
De Ceglie: 6- Like Grygera, De Ceglie wasn’t too troubled as Lecce didn’t really attack down the wings. Got forward, had a few good crosses in the 1st half, but otherwise a pretty quiet game.

Anyone with photoshop skills, please take the above picture and make it into this with “Welcome to Torino”

Krasic: 8- Blimey, this guy is sensational, and he’s only 25 years old. Looking more and more like the goddamn buy of the summer, whether Serie A or all of Europe. I thought Krasic would be a great signing, but he’s looking beyond great. What is that, 2-3 assists yesterday?
Aquilani: 7- Stepped in and displayed all his quality, very much displaying the player he was at Roma. Technical quality, simple and difficult passing with ease, and a lovely long-range effort to open the scoring.
Felipe Melo: 7- Freed from any kind of playmaking responsibility, Melo is able to do what he does best. Win back the ball, and pass it to someone else. I’ve mentioned several times that Felipe also has an eye for an occasional great pass, and he shows that too. Maybe when he’s not pressured to be a playmaker is when he can actually be one.
Marchisio: 7- Played again as a central-midfielder-slash-winger, in which he occasionally advanced down the wing, other times drifted centrally to help Aquilani and Melo. Excellent performance, and on the wing he’s allowed to display a few tricks here and there. I still don’t like him outside, though.

Quagliarella: 6- Drifts out wide and deep, given a lot of tactical license. His cross, albeit not a particularly good one, led to Aquilani’s opening goal, and then with a diving header, scored Juve’s 3rd in the 1st half to kill the game. Why did he score it with a diving header when a simple tap-in could have sufficed? Because he’s Quags, damnit. If he makes it harder, it becomes easier.
Amauri: 5.5- Good build-up play, but again doesn’t seem to have the ruthless streak to score freely. With Dzeko’s shadow looming, he needs to get into form or his position as “foreign bomber who (supposedly) scores lots of goals with some skill involved” will be replaced. Fouled a lot, and caught offside in a relatively mediocre performance.

Delneri: 7.5- Everything worked well, the defense, the midfield, the offense. Cannot complain about how the coach had the team organized.
Del Piero: 10- Grazie per tutti i gol, Alex.

Things I Think I Think:
#1- Foreshadowing: Roberto titled his preview “All About The Quality.” Lecce didn’t have any.

#2- Tactics, tactics, tactics: In theory, Delneri played a 4-4-2 and will always play a 4-4-2, but for large portions of the match this was simply not the case. In reality, between Krasic shifting flanks and attacking the middle, it could easily be interpreted as a 4-3-1-2, with Marchisio drifting central and Krasic as the trequartista. Hard to argue it didn’t work.

#3- Delneri this summer: “Del Piero is the charismatic captain of Juventus but for the future I’m thinking of Marchisio. Marchiso’s an important element, a central midfielder, not a wide man. He’s young, he has the right temperament, I like him.” Gah. Where did that go to?

Aquilani is not impressed with Melo’s dancing

#4- Melo’s cucchaio: He bet his father he’d do it. Aquilani teased him he wouldn’t be able to. A cucchaio shows incredible confidence, perhaps bordering on cockiness or hubris, but it shows Melo is full of it at the moment. In so many ways.

#5- Perfect way to leave the international break: I was a bit worried that some of our positive momentum going into the international break might be robbed, but we were raring to go from minute one. We didn’t look rusty at all, looked tactically

#6- Another clean sheet: Forget the 4-0 drubbings, every clean sheet we get is going to boost the confidence of players like Grygera, De Ceglie, and Bonucci, all who need it. That’s two in a row, Red Bull Salzburg are a poor team and we should really aim for another clean sheet there, regardless of how many goals might come.

#7- Red Bull Salzburg on Thursday: Lecce are a team “without quality.” So are Red Bull Salzburg, who have lost 2-0 to Lech Poznan (at home) and 2-0 to Manchester City. We have Bologna coming up this weekend, so Delneri should use this time to experiment. Maybe using Pepe as a fullback, ahem ahem?

#8- Missed the game? Watch it on YouTube, narrated by Claudio Zuliani.

#9- Beyond the Pitch, the best damn podcast out there managed to snag an interview with Diego. He says some very kind words about Juventus, and also drops a big hint about Dzeko. (Those “Juventus fans hounding us about how much they liked you” that Anthony mentions could have been me. I may have sent them a lot of messages about it.) Absolutely worth a listen, it’s about 10 minutes or so, go czech it out. (Grygera/Nedved groan)

C’E UNA STELLA IN CIELO CHE INDICA IL CAMMINO, FORZA JUVE VINCERE E IL TUO DESTINO!

Alas, those sorts of high octane efforts can never last an entire match. Now while the addition of Milos Krasic provides a constant offensive threat that does wonders to help improve our team’s balance, Juventus looked sincerely troubled when confronted by City’s quality on the ball for most of the match. At times, a tear trickles down the side of my face knowing that we can’t stack up to teams like City in that respect. But, we are who we are for now, and at least no one’s trying to hide that.

“The great intensity could be an important factor in this match [against Inter]. In the last few weeks, we played many matches, facing teams that make intensity their greatest quality and we held well and therefore the physical condition is optimal but it is clear that these matches depend also on the psychological factor. We must give the maximum with great intensity and will” -GDN

It’s all about controlled aggression with Juventus. Delneri knows we aren’t blessed with the most talented players in the world, but they’ve got heart dammit- trophy case loads of it. This Sunday our defense is obviously going to have their hands full with Eto’o and Milito, plus they’ll have to keep one eye on the elusive Sneijder as well. However, the word on the street is that Pandev, Samuel, and Zanetti aren’t playing so there goes one of Inter’s important wide threats, and one tireless utility man.

Their midfield starlet Coutinho, who had a promising performance in their recent 4-0 Werder drubbing, might also be a cause for concern although according to Johonna and La Gazzetta, Biabiany will start out wide on the left. Speaking of Johonna, she’s gone the extra mile and put together a little history lesson on the Derby d’Italia in all its glory, and not. So check it out if you’re bored. There are only so many Amauri highlight videos online. Speaking of Amauri, this morning’s Gazzetta tips him to start alongside Iaquinta in attack, with Melo and Aquilani in center midfield.

In terms of our unavailable players, Delneri has for the first time in a while everyone at his disposal. Click here for the call-ups. Back in September I made the mistake of thinking we’d have to worry about our fitness levels after playing Lech Poznan three days before we traveled to Udinese. Well we all know what happened there don’t we? So this time around I expect to see a similar starting line-up to the one we did in Manchester, with the aforementioned exceptions. That’s all for now until the final whistle. Check the comments section for more information on streams, line-ups, etc. Enjoy Papai’s best to date.

IERI… OGGI… DOMANI… SEMPRE JUVE!!!

Damn you Poland.

There were a lot of things to like about tonight’s game. There were also a lot of things not to like. What gives me the most hope is that Delneri had this team fighting positively, until he decided to take off Iaquinta (though to be fair, Iaquinta may have asked to come off) and that spirit we saw against Sampdoria of digging in and battling hard was still around. That is going to be the most important thing for us this year, by far. If this was last year, after going 2-0 down, we would have thrown in the towel and lost 4-1.

Another thing to like about tonight was the impressive display of leadership by Chiellini and Del Piero. When the going gets tough, true leaders grab their team and pull them ahead. That could not be a better fit tonight for Giorgio Chiellini and Alessandro Del Piero, two icons of this team. The current captain, and his successor. Between the two, they were responsible for all 3 goals we scored. Two set pieces delivered by Del Piero that Chiellini converted, and then of course, another eurogol from our beloved bandiera. I’m sorry I ever doubted you, Ale, but tonight showed with the proper motivation, it doesn’t matter how often you’ve played recently. I’m sure Del Piero is exhausted tonight, but he made it happen on the pitch.

The opposite of Ranieri (getting the beginning wrong, making good subs and fixing it mid-game) until he went conservative late and ended up with a draw.

Things I didn’t like- Delneri. Frankly, I attribute this loss to him. He got the starting line-up wrong…De Ceglie clearly wasn’t fully fit, and that forced a substitution. Moreso, the central midfield of Felipe Melo and Sissoko, or the “black hole where calcio goes to die” as I like to call it, does not work. It doesn’t. When they play, there’s a 50% chance of a red card or a penalty, and we got the latter today. The passing was dreadful, and while they improved at half-time, it still was the wrong decision. I give massive credit to Delneri for turning things around at half-time, he got the boys jazzed up and ready to play, and we looked like a totally different squad in the 2nd half. However, he made another mistake at the end. Unless Iaquinta was asking to come off, going defensive was the wrong move. He’s right that the concentration wasn’t adequate, but either way, it invited massive pressure onto us. We held out for a while, but ultimately, it didn’t work out. We were looking very dangerous up until that moment, Motta had a nice one-two with Del Piero that nearly resulted in a goal, but as soon as that change happened, we went on the opposite side. I’m fine with resolute defending, don’t get me wrong, but we haven’t the defensive resolve quite yet to hold out. 2-3 minutes, yes. 15 minutes, after an energy-exhausting comeback, and we were bound to give too much space.

Delneri: This result must make us reflect on ourselves. We recovered into an important position, but then we lost when we should have closed out the match. We put too much effort into scoring the 3rd goal, when we should have slowed play a bit. Above all, in the final moments, you are tired. Then they can squeak a goal in, even if they scored a brilliant one. We should have held on, not looked for the 4th goal. What were the problems? They have remained the same. Problems of attention, problems in assurance in what we’re doing on the pitch. Today, I saw not the great quality of our opponents, but errors in concentration. Here, we messed up and we paid a hard price, sometimes that just ends in a stalemate. Yet our keepers in recent games have made few saved. We have to work on the team ethic and learn to be more clinical. We struggle to keep the tempo for 90 minutes and must work on our concentration.

The problem, Mr. Delneri, is that a lot of us saw the team was tired, and knew we wouldn’t be able to keep up our concentration. That 4th goal would have sealed the deal, even if we killed ourselves to get it. And even if we didn’t, having Iaquinta up top to run down on long balls and harry defenders would have gone a long way to keeping their team honest, to keep them attentive about the counter-attack. I understand he might have wanted to get some fresh legs in midfield, but I still think it was the wrong choice. Especially not just the substitution, but the order to go defensive.

LE PAGELLE:

Manninger: 5- Probably can’t be blamed for any of the goals, but looked incredibly shaky out there, missing on crosses and corners, and not commanding his area well at all. A big part of being a great keeper is organizing your defense, you need to be loud and in charge. Manny wasn’t. Where is the Manny of 08-09?

Grygera: 5.5- Grygera did not have a particularly good game, but I thought he held his own for most of the game, and looked far less nervous on defense than Motta and De Ceglie have occasionally in the past.
Legrottaglie: 5.5- A few errors in moving forward and occasionally granted too much space, but for large portions of the match looked comfortable with Chiellini.
Chiellini: 8- Absolute monster of a performance from Keyser Giorgio today. Two goals that were crucial to get Juventus back in the fight, endless sliding challenges and interventions that have come to characterize his game.
De Ceglie: 5- Struggled with an injury this week, and didn’t look ready to go today. Another average performance that won’t be encouraging any Juventini out there, hooked at the break for Motta.

Krasic: 6.5- Battled for every ball out there, ran plenty, cut open a few good chances here and there. Another impressive performance from the Serbian.
Sissoko: 5- Stupid challenge to get booked relatively early, which made any other subsequent fouls risky.
Felipe Melo: 5- Stupid challenge to get booked relatively early, which made any other subsequent fouls risky.
Lanzafame 5.5- Disappointing game from Lanza, who never really made an impression. After a positive pre-season, he’s looking a bit too timid out there.

Magical.

Del Piero 8- 2 assists, 1 goal. What can you ask for more of anyone, much less a near 36-year old playing his 2nd 90-minute game this week?
Iaquinta: 5.5- A good game to get 90 minutes in his leg, clearly not in any kind of form after only recently recovering from injury, but an important physical presence up top. The question for this weekend is, do we do the same with Amauri (give him time in his legs, without form) or run Iaquinta out again? Probably all depends on whether Amauri can even manage 60 minutes or so. Might see Iaquinta start, then come off in the 60th.

Pepe 6- Ran a lot and got himself into dangerous positions. Looking better since the Bari debacle.
Motta 5.5- One nice run down the flank, but otherwise some poor crossing and nervy defending. Most attacks came down his flank, as Grygera held his own defensively a bit better.
Marchisio s.v.-

Delneri 5- Has done magnificently to inspire his men at half-time, but the wrong set up and wrong attitude to start with. And as I said above, not a fan of pulling back with more than 10 minutes remaining.

Like a kid at Christmas…nearly 36 years old, and he still celebrates every goal like it’s his first

Things I Think I Think:
#1- Delneri: I already posted most of my thoughts on him above, but going defensive with 10+minutes when your team clearly doesn’t do well at maintaining concentration is the wrong move.
#2- A Race Against Time: I liked the mentality. The “non mollare mai”, the drive to get back into the game. I worry, however, about how long that spirit can last. I understand this team takes time to build, although conceding 6 goals in 2 games at home this season is unacceptable. The worry is that the morale might start to slip before Delneri gets the team playing like he wants to. Then we are at square one.
#4- Chiellini, our best center forward: Maybe against Udinese we should put Chiellini up top with Del Piero, and Legro-Bonucci at CB. I would seriously be entertained. That guy is lethal up top.

22 years old. 20 goals in 30 games in the Hungarian league last year, 4 goals in 5 in the Polish league, and a hattrick in his first European game against Juventus. Ladies and gentlemen, a name to remember: Rudnevs. (But what is going on with his hair?)

#5- The fullbacks are young and inexperienced: Which is cool and all, but COUGH COUGH MARTIN CACERES COUGH COUGH. Touch of the cold the last few days, I apologize.
#6- Team Eats: Kielbasa and pierogies. I honestly don’t know any other kind of Polish food. I looked at the Polish cuisine Wikipedia, and was not terribly impressed or motivated to delve more into Polish cooking. Does it count for the next Lech Poznan game if I just drink vodka? (Polish enough, right?) Also, what is with eastern/northern European countries and bad food? (No offense to any out there) I was in Germany once, and the food was blech. I asked the German waiter what would go good with this food, and his response was “beer.” He was right, and German drinking habits suddenly made sense. Climate’s already bleak, why is the food?
#7- How is Grygera still in this team? Nothing against him, actually. I like Grygera, I’m not sure why. Not for his performances, certainly, maybe just because he’s Czech and thus some kind of continuation to the great Pavel Nedved. And seriously, thought he was “alright” today. But I’m curious as to why he wasn’t transfer listed like Zebina, Grosso, Salihamidzic, Camo, Trez, etc. He’s 30 years old, and not that great, although he is on a low salary. My guess is for two reasons: First, he rolls with il Capitano and second, among illustrious players like Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Mario Balotelli, and Maxwell, Mino Raiola represents Grygera. (Raiola has a thing for Dutch league players and Czechs, evidently) He will be here until his contract expires.

#8- 3 Goals conceded again, an Analysis:

i. Classic counter-attack. Simply put, this is shared across the defense and the rest of the team, for failing to get back quick enough. Felipe Melo, however, takes the ultimate blame for such a stupid foul. There was no attempt to play the ball, he just ran at full pace right through the guy. It was 3v3 on the counter, played to perfection.
ii. This one also goes to the whole team. Legrottaglie missed a sliding tackle at the beginning, what annoyed me is how Grygera and Lanzafame stand watching, not moving at all. Lanzafame should have had a tackle early on, and after Chiellini blocked the shot, De Ceglie should have been in there too. Grygera motionless.
iii. This one goes out to the central midfielders. Not sure who’s supposed to cover that area, but Rudnevs had far too much space and time to take a shot. The defense was properly set, but Marchisio, Melo, or Momo should have been back there. Or possibly Krasic or Pepe, as he came in from a fairly wide position.

So it wasn’t quite like Sampdoria, where the goals were pretty exclusively the fault of the defense. The mediani didn’t do their job today, their most basic job, which is to cover the defense, as goals #1 and #3 showed. And they were basically just clowning around, picking up yellows, making poor tackles, and passing to the other team. Another crap game. Melo and Sissoko can (theoretically) work with a player like Aquilani, or Marchisio, but they are called the black hole for a reason, and it’s not related to race.

That’s about all for now. It’s time for me to get the hell out of work, and go home and play FIFA10, where my team doesn’t draw 3-3 or lose 1-0. Until Sunday, cheerio all.

The fact that Amauri is making that much (as 2nd highest earner in the team) is absolutely ghastly, and Secco should be hung upside down and shot in the center of Turin. Players salary that surprised me the most was Krasic- I guess he really did want to play for Juventus.

CalcioMercato added up the numbers of last years salary list, and it turns out by offloading deadweight, Marotta saved 25mil off the wage bill in one summer. Not bad. Coulda added about 10mil to that number if he had sold Amauri, though…

Later today, Juventus will play the first leg of their last play-off against SK Sturm Graz en route to the Europa League group phase beginning September 16th. The Austrians are already 4 games into their top-flight campaign and sit second, two points behind Josko Ried. Because of their early start, we’ll have to be acutely aware of their fitness levels and approach the game with the same amount of determination. More information about this tie after the jump.

SK Sturm Graz is an Austrian football club that was founded in 1909. Graz is Austria’s second-largest city behind Vienna, and the capital of the federal state of Styria. It has a population of 291,890 as of 2010, and has a long tradition as a student city as evidenced by its six universities and more than 44,000 students. In keeping with the city’s student theme, SK Sturm Graz saw most of its success using young players from the club’s academy beginning in the mid-nineties under Bosnian football manager and former player from the former Yugoslavia, Ivan Osim.

Between 1994 and 2002, Osim led SK Sturm Graz to the Austrian Championship in 1998 and 1999, the Austrian Cup in 1999 and the Austrian Supercup in 1998 and 1999. SK Sturm Graz was also featured in the UEFA Champions League in 2000-01 where they won their group against Galatasaray, Rangers, and AS Monaco FC, reaching the second round for the first time. That year the league campaign was less successful – a fourth place finish, the worst under Osim.

Since Osim left in 2002 due to increasing criticism from the club’s President, SK Sturm Graz has never been the same. After some modest European success, the added revenue was never re-invested in the youth academy and was squandered on fruitless talent. Eventually, SK Sturm Graz filed for bankruptcy on September 1st 2006. As of today, the team is coached by German manager Franco Foda, and share a 15,400 seat stadium with their local rivals Grazer AK. Until 2006, the stadium was named after Arnold Schwarzenegger who was born near Graz but was re-named in February 2006 to UPC-Arena.

“It’s a special game for me and will be more emotional than usual,” our very own Austrian, Alex Manninger, told Juventus Channel. “We’re going to play in a beautiful city where football is passionate and the stadium, albeit small, will be packed. Within two days of the draw, the tickets for this game were sold out. For them the meeting with Juventus is the match of the year.”

“Many people have asked me for information about Sturm Graz, but I’ve been away from the Austrian League for a long time. Their Bundesliga only has 10 teams who face each other four times per season. The level of football is clearly inferior to Italy, but our opponents will be more physically fit after a month of official games. They’ll give it their all, run a great deal and try to play attacking football. We must be careful, but I am confident. If Juventus put their superior quality on display, we will return with a positive result.”

SK Sturm Graz (4-4-2) Probable Starting XI: Gratzei; Strandfest, Schildenfeld, Feldhofer, Purcher; Weber; Holzl, Bukva, Muratovic; Kienast, Szabics. Injuries: Midfielder Kienzl

Juventus (4-4-2) Probable Starting XI: Storari; Motta, Bonucci, Chiellini, De Ceglie; Lanzafame, Sissoko, Marchisio, Pepe; Diego; Amauri. Available options: Manninger; Legrottaglie, Constantino, Ferrero, Grygera; Melo, Martinez; Del Piero, Trezeguet. Injuries: Goalkeeper Buffon

Links: atdhe.net [direct match link], rojadirecta.org [homepage], myp2p.eu [match thread].

IERI… OGGI… DOMANI… SEMPRE JUVE!!!

Tiago has fired a parting shot at Juventus following his move back to Atletico Madrid on loan. The Portugal international seemed to revel in the idea that Juventus couldn’t sell him outright. Tiago has made no secret of his annoyance at the way Juventus have treated him in recent years. Speaking at his second official unveiling as an Atletico player, Tiago said: “Atletico and I are happy, but in the end Juve will be a little less so. I am very happy. It was very difficult for me, but in the end I got what I wanted. I believe that we are much stronger than last year.

The Juventus Offside exclusive on how the prior incident went on.

For someone who has NO personality on the pitch, he has a large amount of it off the pitch. You all may remember when he LOCKED our club President in the bathroom for trying to make him sign with another club. I didn’t understand why he did it the, and I don’t understand why he’s being such a bitch about things now. Tiago has nothing to complain about at Juventus. At one point under Ranieri AND Ferrara, he got his time to prove himself, and failed to do so. He was never verbally assaulted by the fans like Felipe Melo or Z3BINA. And now, we try and offload him to a club he wants to be playing for, and he acts like a complete ass about the whole thing.

Either way, between the Tiago and Andrade experiments, here is a new official policy for Juventus.