Should Buffon be benched for Storari?

By: agiamba | March 10th, 2011

Take a deep breath.

It’s a thought I posed earlier this week in the comments section after the Milan debacle, and it looks like others in the press have wondered the same thing.

Last summer we signed Marco Storari, a journeyman goalkeeper who has had an exceptional last few years. Through his heroic efforts for Sampdoria in the second half of the season, he was rated by the Gazzetta dello Sport as the best keeper in Serie A. With Gianluigi Buffon out long term, Marotta and Delneri handed the gloves to another fellow ex-Samp man. And he did them proud- with a few shaky moments here and there, Storari was excellent in the first half of the season, he probably deserved a recall to the Azzurri.

This January, with Buffon’s return imminent, rumors swirled that Storari wanted to continue playing, and was considering leaving the club to find space. We’ve learned time and time again that whatever Delneri says, he means the exact opposite, and he strung Storari along insisting that “Buffon would have to win his place back” and he would not automatically take over a starting shirt. San Gigi made his return from injury, and Storari was immediately benched. The decision was a correct one- Buffon means a lot to this club, and when he’s on form, he’s the best keeper in the world, one of the best in Italy. Storari is a very good keeper, but being the best in Italy doesn’t compare to Gigi’s record.

The team has slid massively ever since Gigi’s return. In a clear case of “correlation does not imply causation” no man in his right mind would blame Gigi for the slump in performance. But we find ourselves in a very delicate situation; the word “crisis” is often thrown around in Italy haphazardly, but there’s no doubt we are in a crisis right now. And Gigi has not been the rock at the back we want. It might be harsh, but he may have lost us two of our last three games- his sending off against Lecce complicated things enormously, as we battled for 80 minutes down a man. The game against Milan was rather disappointing, as Gattuso’s effort was quite tame, it’s Rino and on his weaker foot, and while I’ve never been a keeper myself…Buffon should have done better.

I don’t think it’s a case of Gigi carrying an injury, he just hasn’t ramped up into form yet. Remember, he was out of action for six months or so, and rust builds up over that amount of time. (Paolo De Ceglie is looking at nearly 4 months out now…) No one expects a player to immediately return to form after an injury, that’s why Vincenzo Iaquinta has been positively worthless to Juventus for the last two years.

But as I said, we’re at a delicate moment here, and Gigi is perhaps not as assured at the back as we’d like. I’d like to repeat that he’s in no way responsible for the woeful performances the rest of the players have delivered. There’s no question that Gianluigi Buffon will be Juve’s #1 for the next few years. But in the crisis we find ourselves in, every small thing matters. A vital stop can deliver 3 points, which helps boost badly needed confidence and morale in the Juventus camp. It’s certainly not the first thing to focus on, getting Krasic and Martinez to actually cross well would be high on my list of priorities, but a draw v Milan and Lecce result in a different team right now.

A temporary changing of the guard?

Personally, I would give the gloves to Storari for a game or two, and see how he does. It’d reaffirm that at Juventus, you have to win your shirt, and I don’t think San Gigi would take it too badly, though the rumor mills of him buying a house in Manchester would surely resurface. As Adam notes in his piece on la Vecchia Guardia, unlike the others (save perhaps Trezeguet) was still at the peak of his career, yet chose to remain at Juventus during Calciopoli, during Serie B, and has repeatedly reaffirmed his commitment to the club despite all the mediocrity since. Buffon has not done very well in his last few games, and a few small differences between him and Storari could lead to some vital points, and a vital recovery for the team.

If we weren’t in a crisis right now, then certainly Gigi would continue playing, and hopefully give him some time to return to form. But I’m getting the uneasy feeling that we’re at a critical point now, where either we’ll recover and finish decently, or perhaps careen off the cliff like we did last year…

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Blanda_Amania

Redirected.
djp4cal

GOALKEEPER'S POINT OF VIEW. BOOM.

Like a lot of other things, a lot of people's performance is dependent on confidence. I know when I was a keeper in college, when I was low in confidence, my play suffered.

Maybe Gigi — and the whole team for that matter — is struggling with a bit of a dip in confidence? I don't know. These mistakes are certainly un-Gigi-like. Just an idea.

As much as I love him, Gigi taking a game or two off definitely wouldn't hurt. Get him away from the game and forget about things while he just concentrates on training. That's all.
Comrade

Start ADP-Matri and tell Giorgio to get medieval on Giaccherini's ass. If there is delta enthusiasm in the squad, we should be fine for this encounter.
roberto

Preview for tomorrow's game is up,

http://juventus.theoffside.com...
Vittorio

Aaron, what do you know about the Elkann situation? I keep hearing that he is investing in cricket, and the angle of all of those reports is the inference that he is withholding funds from Juve. Does anyone know what the real story is, and what influence Andrea Agnelli can possibly have over Elkann, or lack thereof? Forza Juve.
jorid22

Wow, Cordoba tried extremely hard to make Knezevic look like Scirea today (bless his soul).
Somnath_Sengupta

Those are 3 names I thought I'd never see in the same line :P
Chuks A.

Expect a lengthy Moviola section on the Inter Offside (by who else than MAD) sometime this weekend...

(woow, I watched the last 6 mins of that game, and what a rollercoaster finish it was!)
agiamba

ARG CARACCIOLO I LOVE/HATE YOU
Chuks A.

And now the moron gets himself sent off for 2nd yellow!
From hero to zero -.-
N G

"should buffon be benched for storari"- thats the only thing i read to be honest and went down to vote for buffon.. :)
AlaskaJuventino

Forza Caracciolo! Gets himself suspended for Juve-Brescia and equalizes for Brescia vs. Inter.
Chuks A.

Funny how Lanzafame can't even get into the starting lineup of Brescia (for the last couple of weeks/months...)

Bloody hell Caracciolo, misses a frikkin pen (JC is a pretty good pen stopper tbh)
Cordoba is an idiot though lol xD
jorid22

Chiellini and Iaquinta had a slight 'fight' in training.

Don't think it was anything big but apparently teammates had to get in between and separate them.

So let me get this straight, Iaquinta is incessantly broken, awfully mediocre AND very capable of getting on his teammates nerves (Bonucci, Chiellini) all at the same time?

Why the hell is this worthless p.o.s still here?
Somnath_Sengupta

I bet it had something to do with who has bigger nose syndrome.
Comrade

Till last season, I was okay with him. It's now time for him to GTFO.
jorid22

Idem.
Chuks A.

Toni = injured for Cesena game, so ADP-Matri lineup looks pretty definite then. (http://juventus.com/site/eng/N...

And, according to Eurosport: "Zebina is booked for a late tackle on Sneijder. He is suspended for Brescia's next match with Juventus. Costly booking." What a pity ;-)

(btw, I think Disqus crashed for like 10mins just now)
AlaskaJuventino

More importantly, Carracialo is also suspended. He always looks dangerous, and is Brescia's captain to boot.
Chuks A.

Also, I think if Delneri plays Storari 2morow, in yet another Saturday evening fixture, which I think he won't, he will be following his word really. He said that Buffon will have to earn back his spot with good performances, so if he's now benched due to non-top-notch performances, he'll be saying: Sorry man, your performances haven't been good so you'll have to earn your spot bck by improving them.
AlaskaJuventino

ESPN Announcer: "...but equally quick was Zebina!"

I'm sure I'll wake up soon.
AlaskaJuventino

Random: Anyone watch man city-dynamo kiev yesterday? What a match! Kiev fully earned a 2-0 upset victory, with that ol' bastard Shevchenko scoring a goal. Good on them for knocking out Man City.
Comrade

Forza Zebina.
wali_100

Any team would want Gigi to be in their lineup. from Real Madrid to Manutd to Milan and man city. Tell me what Team ( a big team) would want Storari to be in their starting Lineup?
PS : I actually think is better Keeper than Abbiati but he is NOT world Class. Enough Said!
Somnath_Sengupta

Gigi isnt ahead by much in the poll, tells a lot about how great Storari played in last 6 months.
vidder911

Firstly, I believe that the post smacks of fear...

No offence mate (we've been on this blog long enough to encourage healthy debate :) )
But my problem with this post stems from the fact that the small things, even irrelevant things start to matter when we are down. There are various other tactical and man-management problems that GDN has to deal with Krasic's dip in form has resulted in less dynamism up front, Toni's lack of supply and Aquaman's passing game more limited to people who he knows will waste/lose the ball. The only person he can rely on this season is Melo - he has a clear job and does it.

Going into the problem highlighted by you, Buffon has had a rough couple of games, but GDN has made the choice to stick with him to help him rediscover his consistency. He was nervous in his 1st game back and performed classy in the second. Even his Italy game was fraught with nerves in the 1st half, but he returned to his world-class best in the second. Simply put, Buffon has not been bad, but inconsistent. For that matter, so has Storari (if you saw him against Lecce). This is a clear man-management issue related to instilling confidence and GND has stuck to his idea that with 3 keepers, one of them is sure to go so he might as well give time to his best player...I'd see this issue sorted even before it began.

The problem is not with form (for the whole team). It's the mentality. Whether we accept it or not, when we're on a bad run, even us fan would be quietly nervous after conceding 1st. However, there are two major differences between this ghost and the ghost of last year:

1. Our defence has looked mostly solid but capable of embarassing itself on the counter, unlike last year when we simply dreaded the ball in our own half.. tactially and mentally, GDN has fewer things to work on with his defence (apart from new full-backs) compared to Ferrarra of last year...

2. Our midfield has always pressed on no matter what the situation - our attack has been our achilles heel since Quag's injury. No matter how we pass or whom we pass to, there are very less chances finished. Last year was very different where we didn't even have a clear system for the midfield to function. Moreoever, we have stopped relying on one man (Diego) to make those runs and passes, we're more a team now albeit a less efficient one.

It's largely because of the squad unity that we have helped determine the mental problem. Now that we've identified the problem, it's only a matter of fixing it!

I have the faith that the boys will turn this around in a respectable manner...
jorid22

Bench Buffon for laughing like an imbecile after the team loses thanks in part to him putting in a mediocre display?

Yes. Storari hasn't been great lately though.
Blanda_Amania

When did that happen?!
jorid22

End of Milan game as he was hugging and catching up with Gattuso, Zambrotta (I think it was those 2, I might be wrong).

I'm probably overreacting but when the team loses, at home, again, to a direct rival, while you didn't have a great game and you are the captain of the team, bullshit like that is unacceptable.

I'm not doubting Gigi's affection for Juventus and I never have but it was a moment of idiocy.
agiamba

Yeah, I had a thought on that I'll expand on later...
Blanda_Amania

I don't blame you for feeling that way. I remember watching my teammates laughing and taking pictures with the team that knocked us out of a finals and I was like WTH? Screw that. I think Buffon is just the ultimate diplomat always making sure he represents Juve well, even going as far as playing the gracious loser. Hard to watch when you're po'd at him. I'm sure he goes home and beats himself about the head over every little thing.
Somnath_Sengupta

I am terribly biased when it comes to Gigi :)

I would have voted for him even if we had Schmeichel or van der Sar on bench :)
Blanda_Amania

I voted Buffon. They are both pretty much at the same level of capability now, Buffon being out of form/not himself, and Storari at peak. Both capable of great saves, and capable of blunders that can cost us a game when we're not producing up front. With Buffon, we can expect him to regain previous confidence and form with regular play, which would have him be the better of the two in time, no? Between the two he's the vet player who has a stronger bond with the club, team, and fans, and plans to stick around until they kick him out.

And, a big favor from my fellow Spanish speaking Juventini, can you translate this:

http://vimeo.com/20875615

Warn me if it'll break my heart, ok? Heard he publicly complained about the manager. :(

xoxo,
Blanda
agiamba

Noise is really tough at certain parts, particularly when he briefly mentions Juventus. About the coach, he earlier insinuated that the manager picked his own friends to play, but said "that's in the past, it was a poor outburst from me." Says he doesn't know where he'll play in the future, says "I haven't thought about it, I just let the time pass. I hope to get minutes and play, if that is here, then I'm happy. We'll see at the end of the season." 5mil buy out clause, Sevilla would be nutty not to take it...I'd kill to have him at Atletico...or better yet, Juve.
Blanda_Amania

Ugh, definitely a poor outburst. Very surprised by it and the translation of his "outburst" made him sound bitter and a bit cocky. Still want him back, though, darnit! Thank you for the translation!
Comrade

A translation of his interview was being shown yesterday on football italia. See if they still have in the videos that load on the home page - http://www.football-italia.net...
Blanda_Amania

Thank you!
Papilaya(John)™★★★

how about we just start buffon, then at half time, we bring in storari =D
Somnath_Sengupta

A staffetta between goalkeepers ? That like a take-over-the-world type evil plan :D..the opponent team will be so confused that we might actually win some matches.
Rinaldo2882

That'd be too drastic a change of formation. We might not be able to handle it.