ANALYSIS: Juventus make virtue of necessity by returning to 4-man defence
Things are going swimmingly for Juventus.Eleven wins on the trot, a raft of promising youths joining in the transfer window, and a team that has qualified to the knockout stages of the Champions League.
But there's trouble afoot. With the club repeating that only "top players" have a hope of breaking into the Old Lady's starting XI, it doesn't look like any more marquee signings will be coming through the door at Vinovo. Ilkay Gundogan, for a start, will continue to be pursued... in summer.
That said, the midfield isn't the Bianconeri's biggest priority at the moment: some questions need to be asked of the defence.
Namely, who can give Leonardo Bonucci a breather from time to time? Who exactly can partner Andrea Barzagli? Not Daniele Rugani, that's for sure, with coach Max Allegri himself confirming this in today's press conference. The former Empoli defender is struggling to impress in the middle of the defence. The solution? A return to a four-man defence, which could be facilitated by Roberto Pereyra's recovery.
Why? Because Allegri loves himself that 4-3-1-2, and El Tucu - who should return to training in the coming days - is the man for him.
This change could end up having an impact on Juventus' European campaign. Last year, the Bianconeri turned things around in Europe by moving to a four-man setup at the back, which tends to work better against top European competition.
The likes of Real, Barcelona and, of course, Bayern Munich can attack down the wings with quick, skillfull dribblers, and it would be better for Juventus to directly deploy full-backs to neutralize them, rather than rely on pulling out a centre-back each time.
Marco Demicheli (@marcodemi90), translated by Edo Dalmonte (@edodalmonte)
