After Lazio: Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo

10/20/2024 05:05 PM

"A surprise to be sure, but a welcome on.e"

The Good

Possession

Juventus' 1-0 victory over Lazio on Saturday proved that the Thiago Motta method, although extremely new and still in the process of being perfected, is hinged upon two aspects. The first is possession. In their last three Serie A matches, Juve's had an average possession figure of 70.4%, with 65.8% in their smashing of Genoa, 73.4% in the unfortunate draw against Cagliari, and 69.4% in the yellow-clad Lazio. (It was also a bit confusing to watch at first as Juventus has donned their own away yellow kit a few times this season already.)

But what does this mean, and why does it matter?

Simply put, the era of oppositional possession, high defensive play, and "parking the bus" until the opportunity to counter seems to be drawn to its expected close. These high-possession matches are allowing for much more control of the flow and pacing of the game in the favor of Juventus, which have allowed them to continue their unbeaten streak in all competitions through the first 10 fixtures of the 2024-25 season.

Attack-minded play

The second aspect of Motta's methodology that is working well for Juve is an attacking mindset. While admittedly finishing has been a thorn in the side of this team, and one which Dusan Vlahovic seems to get the brunt of, the team's speed, cohesion, and shot tally in this most recent campaign have proved the eagerness to become a goal-scoring powerhouse in Serie A. In fact, aside from the 1-0 scoreline versus Lazio, no victory this season has come from Juventus scoring less than three goals, which is no easy feat in Italy, and especially difficult in the Champions League.

Vlahovic as a leader

While he is oftentimes seen encouraging and "hyping up" the team after a missed goal-scoring opportunity, there were two instances in the Lazio match that showed Dusan Vlahovic's leadership capabilities. The first was his encouragement of Federico Gatti after a missed shot in the middle of the first half that could have given Juventus an early lead. Gatti, who has been exceptional with headed goals, opted to try to kick the ball in to no avail. When Gatti was seen looking exceptionally down on himself, the first person to console him was: Dusan Vlahovic.

The second time was a similar scenario. After an attempted header by Douglas Luiz failed to see the back of the net, again it was Vlahovic coming to put an arm around the Brazilian Midfielder.

Vlahovic's role becoming a leader has not been an easy journey. Earlier seasons saw him being exceptionally hard on himself, visually upset by referee judgment calls, and a few on-field tantrums after missed goal opportunities. But this season, Vlahovic does seem somehow different. The striker comes off as more mature, more composed, and more able to balance his duty as the club's primary goal scorer with the demands of being a leader.

The Bad

Difenza senza Bremer

There is no denying that for Juve's defense, Lazio was a special circumstance. An early red card for Alessio Romagnoli in the 24th minute forced Le Aquile to play a very defensive match. However, this meant that Juventus has not yet been able to see what match days are truly going to be like going forward without Gleison Bremer, who suffered a torn ACL injury against RB Leipzig and likely won't be able to take the pitch again this season. With the Juventus looking at matches against VfB Stuttgart and Inter Milan to come over the next week, it is hard to judge based on only two matches how the club will function in the coming months without arguably its best player.

Finishing

Another "bad" from this match came in the form of finishing, an almost hackneyed complaint from the fans at this point. In 16 shots, only 3 were on target, and it took a registered own goal on the part of Mario Gila in the 85th minute for Juventus to walk away with the win at home. That being said, with more than three quarters of the season to go, and the upcoming January transfer window where Juventus will ideally find a formidable backup striker, it is too early to tell if this will be a long term issue, or is only a symptom of the growing pains that come with a brand new system of play.

The Ugly

Card accumulation

Overall, this match showed very promising results and progress, with the exception of its low scoring nature. However, yellow card accumulation for Juventus was very high. While the first half concluded with only one yellow being shown to Manuel Locatelli in added time, the second half saw an additional three more yellows given to Nicolo Savona, Nicolo Fagioli, and Douglas Luiz.

While Serie A is known for its aggressive style of play and defensive attitude — with Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice even being quoted on stating how difficult it is to play against Italian teams in their recent draw against Atalanta — Juventus need to be more careful than ever when it comes to the accumulation of cards. Too many players are injured at this point in the season for any unnecessary suspensions to further gut the starting lineup.

Good, Bad, or Ugly?

The lack of goals scored, in addition to a few unnecessary yellow cards in the second half, were certainly detractors in this match. However, Lazio has been no pushover, with wins against the likes of Empoli, Torino, and Udinese, and a surprising draw against AC Milan.

While it can be claimed there is more to be expected from Juventus playing against a 10-man opponent, injuries and suspensions were to blame for such a lackluster scoreline, and as our own Sam Lopresti put it, "this would have been a game for Francisco Conceição to eat."

Truer words have not been spoken.

In summation, Juventus' 1-0 victory over Lazio at the Allianz was …. GOOD!