Guess who’s in first place for extra than simply a few hours?
Max Allegri tried to warn you all. He tried to warn you that Lecce, regardless of their total place within the league desk, had been going to be a tricky go of it on their residence turf. They proved it through the first half of the 2023-24 season they usually had been going to be no totally different this time round, in keeping with the veteran Juventus supervisor.
And for the opening 45 minutes on Sunday evening, that warning was very a lot being felt.
However as has been the case to start the 2024 calendar yr, Juve have simply felt inevitable.
That coincided with one other run of excellent type continued in Puglia: Dusan Vlahovic’s sizzling streak in entrance of objective that has carried over Christmastime into the brand new yr.
Vlahovic scored his second brace in lower than every week, propelling Juve from the first-half doldrums to a second-half efficiency that seemed so much like what his workforce has been doing so much in 2024. The tip consequence, with a Bremer-themed cherry on prime, was a 3-0 win and three factors that despatched Juventus to the highest of the Serie A desk with Inter off for the weekend and in Saudi Arabia for the Supercoppa. It additionally prolonged what has been a fully beautiful begin to the brand new yr in relation to Juventus’ objective scoring whole primarily as a result of they weren’t profitable video games like this all too usually via the primary half of the season. They’ve now scored 18 objectives of their final 5 video games and pushing for a second and third objective in video games with the form of ferocity so many supporters have been ready for.
Not solely are Juve now in first, however this win means they’re now a whopping 19 video games forward of Atalanta in fifth place, albeit with the latter having a sport in hand.
That’s simply loopy to consider figuring out how a lot of the season remains to be left to be performed.
It exhibits simply how unpredictable issues have been from third place all the way down to ninth or tenth and in addition simply the straightforward reality of how, whereas generally not trying all that nice, Allegri simply continues to select up win after win after win most of the time.
Juve have now received received 5 straight league video games and 7 in a row in all competitions. It’s the second time this season they’ve put a profitable streak of at the very least 5 video games collectively, the primary getting underway a few weeks after they suffered their lone lack of the season in late-September.
However after a primary half through which Juve actually seemed disjointed and struggled to do a lot of something — the 2 groups mixed for all of two pictures heading in the right direction — the great vibes weren’t precisely flowing in full power like they’d been within the first 4 video games of 2024. It was trying prefer it was both a slim victory incoming or a case of dropping factors in opposition to a workforce within the backside half of the desk. A 3-0 win? Nahhhhhh, not even with what number of objectives Juve have scored currently did it appear to be that state of affairs was going to play out.
And but …
As soon as Vlahovic obtained the ball rolling and scored a volley in the identical form of vogue that Angel Di Maria did a season in the past — you understand, the place it’s not struck all that properly however it proves to be extremely efficient — to open the scoring. The lead was doubled lower than 10 minutes later, though Weston McKennie will certainly have one thing to say about who actually deserved the objective. (And I hope he reminds Vlahovic of it!)
The second-half brace had been Vlahovic’s fifth and sixth objectives in his final 5 Serie A appearances.
Not solely have Juve waken up offensively, however Vlahovic has completed the identical simply as those that had been beginning to surprise about the place he match into the membership’s future once more.
This stuff appear to be linked. Humorous how that works out, proper?
However the greatest factor to remove from this evening outdoors of the straightforward undeniable fact that Juve’s now in first place for extra than simply a few hours is simply how they win it. This was not a case of the wins currently the place they struggled for the opening 10 or quarter-hour after which went off and operating. Juve had been legitimately not good for the whole thing of the primary half, but they had been in a position to shake it off on the half and obtained again to being the Juve of 2024 proper out of the break. And off they went due to it.
Allegri knew of the hazards of taking part in at Lecce on their residence turf — solely Napoli and Torino had received on the By way of del Mare this season — and his workforce responded in a manner that solely appeared to verify that they’re going to be critical gamers within the Scudetto chase. I imply, they’re in first place as we head into the ultimate weekend of January in any case.
RANDOM THOUGHTS AND OBSERVATIONS
- This was Allegri’s three hundredth win in Serie A. The ultimate rating was 3-0. The one factor extra applicable would have been corto muso with an 88th-minute winner from a defender.
- However it’s good to see Max including lungo muso to his corto muso bag of tips.
- Allegri needed a clear sheet away from residence, and he obtained it. That’s extra prefer it from the protection. It’s all the time good when Wojciech Szczesny’s remaining save whole entails nothing that was all that troublesome to attempt to cease.
- At this level, I’m struggling to determine what Weston McKennie has to do to get a objective this season. On this evening, he not solely had Vlahovic faucet in his would-be objective after a very nice header to the again submit, but additionally a header cleared off the road within the first half. A lot of this season has been in regards to the collective complete contributing to the objective scoring numbers somewhat than merely one dude scoring 40% of the workforce’s objective tally, so it’s shocking that McKennie has gotten one to his title with all the possibilities he’s had. It’ll come sooner or later, but when there’s anybody who deserves a objective it’s most positively Wes.
- Credit score the place credit score is due: Filip Kostic’s cross to McKennie on Vlahovic’s second objective was an absolute dime from the fitting wing. What do we have to do to get extra of that from him?
- Talking of very good assists: The free kick from Samuel Iling-Junior on Bremer’s objective was fairly good, too. Similar goes for Andrea Cambiaso taking part in the ball throughout the face of objective on Juventus’ opener.
- Principally what I’m making an attempt to say right here is that Juve’s crossing that arrange objectives on at the present time had been all fairly dang good.
- One thing else that was very nice: the whole counterattack on Juve’s first objective. The power to interrupt that fast, for Kenan Yildiz to carry the ball down the way in which he did and create the preliminary shot after which for Cambiaso to leap on the rebound that rapidly. It was all simply so good and had the Lecce protection simply so extremely stretched.
- Here’s a crucial stat so that you can devour:
- So I’ve a query to ask after you have got learn that Opta stat tweet: Is that good? As a result of Vlahovic doing that appears fairly dang good. Particularly the “within the final 50 years” a part of it.
- I do know I’ve mentioned it so much currently, however Cambiaso simply continues to do stuff that helps Juventus win video games. Some video games is perhaps higher than others, however he’s simply making necessary performs and passes at necessary instances, the most recent being his help to Vlahovic on the opener.
- Who led Juventus in clearances? Bremer.
- Who led Juventus in blocked pictures? Bremer.
- Who led Juventus in interceptions? Bremer.
- Who led Juventus in tackles? Br … nah, simply kidding. It was Danilo.
- However that doesn’t take away from the sport Bremer had defensively. And his objective, the dude GOT UP on that objective. Simply one other evening of Bremer being freakin’ superior.
- Juve’s protection on the entire was superb and I loved that.
- Is Alex Sandro the brand new Juventus victory cigar? I believe at this level of his profession, it’s an applicable form of function for any individual who’s 32 years outdated and doubtless leaving in a couple of months.
- I, personally, like when Juventus is in first place. Particularly when it’s forward of Inter. By the following time Inter performs a league sport, Juve might be 4 factors forward and it’s not like Fiorentina are a straightforward out nowadays. Issues are going to be very, very attention-grabbing the following few weeks, my mates. I hope you’re prepared for all of it.
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