Juventus qualified for the Coppa Italia Final for the second time in three years: here are three talking points from their 2-1 loss at the Stadio Olimpico against Lazio.
Juventus tactics
Whoever was surprised to see another defensive Juventus performance is clearly lying. Starting with a two-goal lead from the first leg, Massimiliano Allegri decided to sit deep and wait for Lazio’s attacks, but the Bianconcelesti scored after just 12 minutes from a corner kick running the coach’s plans. It was painful to watch Juventus, again, even if many players made several technical errors, especially in midfield. Allegri switched to a three-man attack in the final minutes and Milik found the net after a short while, suggesting that, perhaps, the Bianconeri are rejecting a defensive approach and would need a new system in the final games of the season. The same had happened in Cagliari on Friday, but it may be too late for a change with just six games remaining, five in Serie A plus the Coppa Italia Final.
Irritable Juve
Federico Chiesa had raged after being substituted against Torino two weeks ago, and Andrea Cambiaso felt exactly the same last night. There’s no hiding from the fact that Juventus players look more and more irritable in each game. It’s hard to understand the exact reason; surely, there isn’t just one, and Allegri is not the only responsible. Cambiaso told the coach to ‘stay calm’ after being subbed off, which is something quite unusual, especially for such a young player. Is Allegri losing the dressing room? It’s impossible to say. Surely, the feeling is that more than a player can’t wait for the end of the season, which has been highly demanding for the footballers, the coach and his staff members despite the lack of European football.
Promising Lazio
Igor Tudor has been around for just one month, but Lazio are showing some encouraging signs, especially if you consider that the ex-defender has been coaching a group of players that he hasn’t chosen. Some of them will leave in the summer. Felipe Anderson has already announced his departure, Luis Alberto wanted to rescind his contract, but played beautiful football in the last two matches, scoring one goal and providing an assist. With some new signings, picked by Tudor, Lazio can become a very interesting team next season. Ideally, they’ll need at least a new central defender, some reinforcements on the wings and a couple of new players in attack, including a centre forward even if Taty Castellanos played his best game at Lazio against Juve.