Serie A 2019/20: Juventus vs Cagliari – tactical analysis

Cagliari got defeated 0-4 by Juventus in their Serie A meeting which underlined the drop in their form. Juventus’ improved midfield actions and well-executed counter-press didn’t give their opponents any free space and allowed them only one shot on target for the whole 90 minutes.

The better connection and movement in Juventus’ central areas was noticeable and the players deserve to be praised. The hat-trick hero Ronaldo was active as per usual and naturally finished the great work done by his teammates behind.

This tactical analysis aims to explain how the Bianconeri troubled Cagliari’s build-up and how their attacking strategy managed to break their opponents’ defensive structure and reach the impressive 4-0 win.

Lineups

Maurizio Sarri opted for 4-3-1-2 formation with the highly positioned defensive line and active use of the full-backs as per usual. This time though their role was quite different, which will be explained later in the analysis. Wojciech Szczęsny was the started on the goalkeeping spot with a four-man defensive line of Alex Sandro, Leonardo Bonucci, Merih Bemiral and Juan Cuadrado in front of him. The improved midfield line consisted of Blaise Matuidi, Miralem Pjanić and Adrien Rabiot, who contributed well despite the lack of many playing minutes this term. Positioned in the attacking midfield and responsible for providing creative solutions was Aaron Ramsey. As usual, this season, the front duo included Cristiano Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala.

Rolando Maran set Cagliari up in a 4-3-2-1 scheme. Robin Olsen was the unfortunate man on the goal, supported by Luca Pellegrini, Ragnar Klavan, Sebastian Walukiewicz and Fabrizio Cacciatore. The 19-year-old Walukiewicz made his first start for the team and was the only solid performer of Cagliari’s backline. Their midfield consisted of Marco Rog, Luca Cigarini and Nahitan Nández. As per usual, the attack was formed by João Pedro, Radja Nainggolan and Giovanni Simeone.