What are the three main issues that could cost Allegri his job with Juventus? – scout report

A few of the big European teams have been struggling since the start of the season, bringing surprising results in the leagues and on the European scene as well. While teams like Chelsea, Liverpool and Milan have had an inconsistent campaign so far, Massimiliano Allegri’s Juventus seem to be in the worst position in both Serie A and Europe.

The manager’s second time in charge of the Bianconeri is not going as expected as the team are currently sitting eighth in the league and just got knocked out of the UEFA Champions League earning only three points in five games. Although their data doesn’t show any significant issues in their performance, the outcome of their games is utterly unsatisfying. The team often struggle in front of the goal but also often fail in keeping their advantage, which is the main talking point when it comes to Allegri’s tactics.

Despite the few summer transfer moves, Juventus still have difficulties in some positions and have failed to create a strong connection between the lines, which makes it difficult for them to be efficient in possession. Things in defence look slightly more convincing in terms of goals conceded in Serie A, however, there are still some issues that cost them many points each week.

In this scout report, we use tactical analysis to examine Allegri’s tactics and explain the three main issues in the teams performance that might cost him the managerial job.

The connection between the lines

Despite the considerably high pass frequency that Juventus try to employ and being third in the league in terms of pass completion rate (86.4%), the team fail to increase their possession percentile and rarely have more of the ball compared to their opponents.

While their passes are predominantly accurate it turns out that those passes don’t lead to an increased number of opportunities in front of the goal. The reason for this cannot be explained through their data and needs to be examined in detail.

Looking closely at their style of play and their build-up strategy, it is noticeable that the team are often lacking a connection between the lines. And that doesn’t come as an absence of progressive passing and movement but more so a lack of successful partnerships and connections between the players. The difference in their playing style and the incomparability of their strengths and weaknesses often result in inefficient movement and wasted opportunities.

Certain players often get isolated and that’s noticeable mostly in their offensive movement where they frequently overcommit to particular actions and areas, which makes it more difficult to connect. While they are the team with the fewest ball losses per 90 minutes (78.32 avg.), looking at the areas where they lose possession, we can outline that they struggle to retain possession on the edge of the final third. That’s because they have difficulties in getting the ball out of midfield and providing quality balls to quality areas for the attackers.

Part of these struggles are a result of players’ technical abilities. While the team have strong individuals, they haven’t been efficient enough as a collective because their strengths don’t complement each other. The lack of distinguished creative players in midfield or the similarity in the attackers’ style of play are all signs that Allegri’s side won’t be able to play to their potential.

While