On Sunday at 20:45 (CEST), AC Milan took to the pitch at San Siro against Juventus in what was an important step toward a place in next season’s UEFA Champions League. A win on Sunday would have allowed them to approach the final four matchdays with greater calm. However, the final result (0-0) was a fair one and was still a significant step.
At San Siro, however, they faced an opponent that is anything but easy to play against: since the arrival of Luciano Spalletti, Juventus have shifted gears, climbing the table and closing the gap on Milan and Napoli. The Rossoneri have only a 3-point advantage over the Bianconeri and, for this reason, it was crucia for Allegri's teaml not to repeat the same mistake made against Napoli: in the match at the Maradona, Milan took to the pitch trying to manage the game and snatch a draw. At the end of the 90 minutes, however, the team left defeated, effectively saying goodbye to their Scudetto dream.
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The qualities of Juventus:
One thing is certain: Spalletti’s arrival on the Juventus bench has given the team the certainty that was clearly lacking in the first part of the season. Neither Thiago Motta nor Igor Tudor had managed to give the team a clear identity, despite having excellent players at their disposal.
With Spalletti came a change of pace: Juventus have made up ground and are now competing with Milan, Napoli and Como for a place in the Champions League. Under the Tuscan coach, the Bianconeri have collected 27 points in 16 matches, with an average of 1.69 points per game.
The strengths of Spalletti’s team are numerous. The group is the key and decisive element: after an initial period of confusion linked to the David–Locatelli case, the dressing room seems to have come back together, largely thanks to Spalletti, always very skilful (whether one likes it or not) at managing the squad.
Another strong point is certainly their style of play: unlike Milan, Juventus offer a clear, proactive and attacking brand of football. The most decisive players in this respect are undoubtedly Kenan Yıldız and Francisco Conceição who has threatened AC Milan's defence a lot last Sunday while Davide Bartesaghi struggled to contain him. Another player reborn is Jeremie Boga: the former Nice winger has returned to the levels of his last spell in Italy and he was operating in the area of Alexis Saelemaekers and Fikayo Tomori while Kenan Yıldız sat on the bench.
The midfield has also been revitalised: in this regard, the key man is Weston McKennie. The American has become a true attacking midfielder, capable of deciding matches with incisive through balls and decisive assists. The clash in midfield was a tough one: Milan also deployed an excellent department, balanced and capable of hurting teams on the counter-attack.
Milan and Juventus do, however, share one strength: their defence. While Milan have the best defence in Serie A with 27 goals conceded, Juventus are not far behind. The Bianconeri have conceded 29 so far, but what stands out is their recent defensive record. Under Spalletti, in 16 matches, they have conceded only 11 goals with 9 clean sheets. In the last 6 rounds: 4 wins, 2 draws, 14 points and 4 clean sheets. When this solidity is combined with Milan’s attacking difficulties, the likely pattern of the match became clear: they had to defend well and wait for the right counter-attacking opportunity to try to snatch a goal.
The weaknesses of Juventus:
It is true that the match ended in a 0-0 draw at the San Siro, with the Bianconeri having a few important chances to score. However, there were still weaknesses in Spalletti's team. AC Milan tried, as they have done against other top teams in the league, to leave possession to Juventus and then strike on the counter. That would have worked, perhaps, if Rafael Leão and Christian Pulisic were at their best.
In short, the draw was a fair one, and both teams took one step closer to securing the Champions League qualification. Both have defended well, and now, they look forward to their matches to try to seal the race for the top 4 positions in the league.
