On Sunday night, in front of 1,000 fans at Allianz Stadium in Turin, the Italian champions of the last nine years, Juventus, hosted Claudio Ranieri’s Sampdoria in the first matchday of the 2020/21 Serie A season.
This tactical analysis breaks down the tactics of the match between Juventus and Sampdoria. With the use of match footage and data, this analysis unpacks what happened at Allianz Stadium in Juventus’s 3-0 win over Sampdoria.
Lineups
A lot of new trends and faces for Juventus, beginning with the manager. After the firing of Maurizio Sarri in the summer, Andrea Pirlo was appointed as the boss of the bianconeri. Pirlo already brought a change in Juventus’s formation, turning it into a 3-5-2, which often assumed the shape of a 3-4-2-1 or 3-4-1-2 during this game.
In goal, Wojciech Szczęsny was confirmed. With Mathias de Ligt back out due to injury, Leonardo Bonucci, Giorgio Chiellini and Danilo were the three men in the back. The injury of Alex Sandro had Pirlo opt for Gianluca Frabotta on the left flank, while Juan Cuadrado lined up on the right side. Rodrigo Bentancur, who recorded the highest tally for assists in Juventus last season with seven, started on the bench alongside new signing from Barcelona, Arthur Melo. The two central midfielders were Adrien Rabiot and 22-year-old American Weston McKennie, on loan from Bundesliga side Schalke. Aaron Ramsey sat just in front of them with the freedom to roam. On top, Pirlo could count on neither the winner of the 2019/20 Serie A Best Player, Paulo Dybala, nor Federico Bernardeschi, both out with injuries. The winner of last season’s Best Young Player, Dejan Kulusevski, featured next to Cristiano Ronaldo. The two of them had 41 goals and 14 assists combined in the past campaign.
The guests initially opted for a different line-up than their usual 4-4-2, the formation that allowed them to collect several points during the final stretch of the last Serie A season. At Juventus Stadium, Ranieri employed a more cautious 4-5-1, with few changes from last season’s personnel. In front of goalkeeper Emil Audero, the backline of four were, from right to left, Bartosz Bereszyński, Omar Colley, Lorenzo Tonelli and Tommaso Augello. Fabio Depaoli played on the right-wing while the left flank featured Mehdi Léris. Sitting in the number six position was Albin Ekdal, with Jakub Jankto and Morten Thorsby next to him. Unable to count on Manolo Gabbiadini due to injury, Ranieri opted for Federico Bonazzoli as the lone striker. Veteran Fabio Quagliarella, the capocannoniere of the 2018/19 season, began on the bench.
Trends in Pirlos Juventus
Juventus retained most of the ball possession, recording a dominant 65 percent. While keeping the ball, Pirlo’s men displayed several different ideas from those of last season under the management of Sarri.
