Juventus is at a crossroads as Vlahovic, Allegri and youngsters plot their lines

Juventus‘ Dusan Vlahovic (left) taps the ball over Napoli’s Alex Meret on Sunday, but sees his effort hit the post. Photo: Alessandro Garofalo/AP” src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/kF7HsynejCMRMz.eZoE_Jw–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU3Ng–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/theguardian_763/12e90f3afa9e8444450330 22c6c2c3c1″ data src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/kF7HsynejCMRMz.eZoE_Jw–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU3Ng–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/theguardian_763/12e90f3afa9e84444503302 2c6c2c3c1″/>

Massimiliano Allegri could find only one explanation for Juventus’ 2-1 defeat against Napoli. “Football was invented by the devil,” he said. “A heavily taken penalty, but the ball then ends up in the net [Daniele] Rugani misses from two meters at the other end.”

Old observers had heard this phrase before; the devil is one of Allegri’s favorite scapegoats. In a weekend that started with Lazio receiving three red cards in a brutally ill-tempered defeat to Milan, it made a refreshing change from talking about referees.

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The Juventus manager himself is sometimes accused of making football devilish. During the first half of the season it seemed as if his Bianconeri were trying to win the title in the most stingy way possible. A run of one-goal victories was underplayed by their visit to Fiorentina in November, when they had the upper hand with 31% possession and attempted four shots to their opponents’ 25.

Juventus had a similar share of the ball at the Stadio Diego Maradona on Sunday, but their approach could hardly have been more different. The willingness to take risks was signaled by a starting eleven, including 20-year-old Samuel Iling-Junior at left wing-back and 21-year-old Carlos Alcaraz (no, not That Carlos Alcaraz!) on the right of a midfield three. Both made their first Serie A start of the season.

Napoli, playing its fourth match under new manager Francesco Calzona, has once again learned how to build from the back. Juventus acted as if they had no time for such niceties. In the 10th minute, Federico Chiesa blocked a free ball, ran the ball downhill and took one touch before crossing to Dusan Vlahovic, who headed narrowly wide of the goal. A pattern was set.

Time and again, Juventus’ break ended with Vlahovic off target. In the 34th minute he met a brilliant pass from Chiesa and lifted a chip over Napoli’s Alex Meret before his shot came back off the inside of the far post. In the 45th, Rugani dispossessed Hamed Traorè and the ball ran to Vlahovic on the edge of the penalty area. His first shot flew just outside the top right corner.

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Between the last two chances, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia gave Napoli the lead: he hit a volley after Bremer could only half clear a cross from Giovanni Di Lorenzo. This wasn’t a beating; the hosts played plenty of enterprising football themselves during a wide-open first half, but Juventus went in at half-time wondering how they had failed to score themselves.

Full-time, Vlahovic took the blame squarely on himself, saying a team like Juventus should be able to rely on its centre-forward to do his job of putting the ball in the net. “If I want to take that final step and become what I want to become, I have to take these opportunities,” he said. “There’s nothing else to say, I had important chances that could have won this match.”

A more charitable assessment would recognize that another striker might not have put himself in a position to get those opportunities. Juventus’ decision to invest more than €70 million in signing Vlahovic from Fiorentina in 2022 has attracted a lot of negative criticism, with the striker only scoring ten Serie A goals last season. Some have accused him of lacking the finesse you would expect from such an expensive player.

Lately, however, Vlahovic has been flourishing. He arrived for this match on a run of eight goals in his last six appearances. The only problem is that his team’s title challenge has now been resolved.

Defeat to Internazionale in the Derby d’Italia seemed to break the faith of a group that performed beyond expectations. How do you stay motivated to chase an opponent who never loses? Inter are on course for 100 points and have only trailed in two league games all season, for a total of less than 40 minutes.

Juventus’ defeat at San Siro was only their second defeat of the entire season. But they immediately followed with a third, losing at home to Udinese and then drawing against Verona. They had collected just five points from the five games prior to Sunday’s match.

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Napoli’s form was not much better, although a 6–1 win over Sassuolo in midweek gave them a boost. The miserable series of events that led to Calzona becoming their third manager of the season was discussed in last week’s column, but there has been marked improvement.

How much is owed to the manager and how much is owed to Victor Osimhen’s return? Calzona pointed out again on Sunday that “you cannot perform miracles in ten days.” Giacomo Raspadori said the main achievement of the new staff was simply that they “helped us achieve that mental reset”.

Juventus found a way back into the match on Sunday and equalized in the 81st minute when Federico Chiesa fired through a crowd. Juve immediately handed the points back to Napoli when Joseph Nonge stepped on Osimhen’s ankle in their area moments later. The Nigerian’s penalty was saved by Wojciech Szczesny, but Raspadori forced the rebound.

It was a miserable evening for Nonge, 18 years old and making only his second ever Serie A appearance. He had only been sent off in the 76th minute, but was sent off again in the 90th.

Assessing and developing young talent will be a priority for Juventus in the final chapter of this campaign. Allegri responded to the four-year doping ban imposed on Paul Pogba on Thursday by saying Juventus were “losing an extraordinary player”, although it feels more like they never got him back in the first place – the Frenchman only appeared a short time on the field. 160 minutes in eight Serie A games since his return in 2022.

This season always had the feeling of a transitional moment for Juventus, excluded from European competition and deprived of another key midfielder when Nicolò Fagioli was suspended for gambling. With a squad already short on world-class talent, Allegri’s choice to prioritize defensive structure and solidity during the first half of the season made sense. Despite Sunday’s defeat, Juventus remain on course to qualify for the Champions League and have reached the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia.

Lazio 0-1 Milan, Torino 0-0 Fiorentina, Monza 1-4 Roma, Udinese 1-1 Salernitana, Napoli 2-1 Juventus, Atalanta 1-2 Bologna, Frosinone 1-1 Lecce, Empoli 0-1 Cagliari, Verona 1 -0 Sassuolo

More adventurous recent performances and team selections can be seen as Allegri’s pitch to stay and take the next steps. His contract expires in 2025 and he said last week he was waiting for Juventus to let him know their plans for next season. There are suggestions he will walk away if an extension is not offered.

“Every year around this time, whether Juventus are doing well or badly, the ‘Allegri dilemma’ comes along,” the manager said on Sunday evening. “I don’t think the Allegri problem exists at the moment. We still have a season to go and we have to focus on achieving objectives that we have not yet achieved.”