Massimiliano Allegri running out of time and ideas at Juventus
>
There is growing negativity towards Massimiliano Allegri and his tactical failures at Juventus.
The Bianconeri may have won their last three league games, but the team still has a series of technical, tactical and disciplinary flaws that the Italian coach has yet to fix.
Allegri’s 5-4-1 formation when his team is defending is neither pretty to look at nor good for motivating his players.
Angel Di Maria, Dusan Vlahovic, Federico Chiesa and Moise Kean are not used to defending and want to offer something in the final third, but the team’s cautious approach is creating a collective psychological block.
The side only comes to life when they are behind in matches and allows games to drift when they are in front.
Massimiliano Allegri is struggling at Juventus, and his cautious approach is criticized
Allegri without ideas at Juventus
Juventus currently have 11 players disconnected from each other and they lack control in midfield, while they are also not getting the best out of Vlahovic.
Allegri looks confused on the touchline and when he asks his assistants for help he is left shaking his head and looking nervous.
His way of motivating players doesn’t seem to have the magical effect it once did; his look betrays the fear of someone who is running out of ideas.
Allegri’s future, as a result, hangs by a thin thread that risks snapping every day.
There is a strong belief that he is not the right man for the club’s revival. Allegri is considered a coach of great players and not a motivator capable of rebuilding a club.
Antonio Conte would be the perfect replacement and Igor Tudor would also be a strong alternative after his good work in Marseille.
Allegri has yet to get the better of Dusan Vlahovic more than a year after joining the club.
Do Juventus really need Allegri?
Juventus beat relegation contenders Spezia over the weekend but must now overcome Nantes in the Europa League on Thursday.
Failure to beat the French club could signal the end of Allegri’s second spell in Turin.
The Italian giants are desperate to win the Europa League so they can play in next season’s Champions League. Removal would be devastating to the team’s financial accounts.
The nervousness in front of the cameras is the clearest example of how Allegri is no longer capable of handling conflicting emotions at the end of a game in which Juventus should have achieved a very easy victory.
The draw against Nantes was an example of a game that Juventus should have ended, but they didn’t and they have a lot of work ahead of them to reach the round of 16 of the Europa League.
One of Juventus’ most glaring problems is their lack of athletic intensity. Players are often physically inferior to their opponents in matches.
Ludovic Blas (pictured) secured a draw for Nantes last week, and the French club could knock Juventus out of the Europa League on Thursday in the second leg of their play-off.
It may seem hyperbolic, but if Juventus were to play in the Premier League, they would risk relegation to the Championship.
The sporting gap with the English teams is shameful and the poor performance against a mediocre French team like Nantes showed it.
Allegri’s excessive caution has left the club’s hierarchy wondering if he is the right man to carry the team forward next season, according to Gazzetta dello Sport.
His lack of sensitivity in handling star players Di Maria and Chiesa, both victims of tactical obsessions and excessive defensive tasks, could drive Allegri out of Juventus.
Chiesa and Di Maria do not feel comfortable with Allegri
For long stretches of the Nantes game, Chiesa was used as a full-back with primary duties as a defender rather than an attacker.
Allegri is not playing to his strengths, and this is an embarrassing situation for the coach considering that Chiesa still needs many more games in his best position to be at 100% after almost a year of inactivity due to a serious knee injury.
Angel Di Maria (left) and Federico Chiesa (right) spend too much time defending
In many moments of the game Chiesa could be seen as a left back taking care of the defensive area. When Chiesa can attack spaces it is devastating, but letting him cover 50 meters of the field seemed excessive to the fans of the stadium.
Chiesa is being run over for playing an unfamiliar role and would be much better suited to play as an attacking end where he can focus on providing quality at the business end of the pitch.
For his part, Di María, as revealed by the sky sports Before the cameras, he was very upset when he left the field against Nantes, but his precarious physical condition seemed to justify the coach’s choices.
However, it was puzzling that when Allegri had Chiesa, Di Maria and Vlahovic at his disposal at the same time, he assigned the first two defensive tasks to ensure balance, leaving Vlahovic isolated in attack, so he turned less cash as the game progressed.