Juventus

Continental disappointment is nothing new for Juve after recent early exits at the hands of Lyon and Porto but the humiliating manner in which they were ...

But as opportunities went begging Villarreal clammed up and soon Juve were paralysed by a well-organised yellow wall. Bonucci is set to feature in Roberto Mancini’s squad for the World Cup play-offs, which Italy start on Thursday in Palermo against North Macedonia after conceding an automatic spot in Qatar to Switzerland on the final day of regular qualifying. Continental disappointment is nothing new for Juve after recent early exits at the hands of Lyon and Porto but the humiliating manner in which they were dumped out 4-1 on aggregate by Villarreal, currently seventh in La Liga, was a huge blow to their and the country’s reputation.

Juan Cuadrado admits Juventus dominated the first half of their match against Villarreal and should have taken the many chances they created.

We did what Allegri asked us, we moved the ball to create space but they were in good shape.” The Colombian said via Tutto Sport: “Sometimes football is like this, we had a good first half without taking advantage of the opportunities and that conditioned us. But they never did and Cuadrado admits sometimes you get punished for missed opportunities in football, but he insists they did all their manager asked of them to in the game.

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Marchisio continued: 'Juventus, in the Champions League, have problems with the identity and quality of the players. If you go out for three consecutive years in the knockout stages of the Champions League, it is a deeper problem.' This question is difficult to answer but the enthusiasm of the fans was destroyed by Villarreal's three goals and this fan unease will not be easy for Allegri to manage. 'Juventus are struggling in this moment in which they have to recover matches, they have never tried to really win this one. At the key moment, Rabiot seemed to disappear from the field as if he were playing hide and seek. Evra added: 'I was disappointed by Juventus and Arthur never accelerated the game. The ball went slow, and I repeat how Dybala should have been on the pitch much earlier'. Losing is not necessarily the concern for Allegri, though, who may not be surprised at the result. The truth is that Juventus have a physically and mentally weak team and many players, including Dybala, can no longer be considered top players. As Allegri well knows, this team is not good enough to reach or win the Champions League final and from this experience he will be able to draw excellent notes for the future. Allegri did few good things but one of them was trying to protect the health of his players. This is perhaps the greatest failure of Massimiliano Allegri's tenure.

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"I think the team played well for over 75 minutes," Juve coach Massimiliano Allegri said. Juve keeper Wojciech Szczesny, who saved a penalty at the weekend, almost kept out the spot kick, but saw the ball squirm through his hands. "Once we got ahead we were more comfortable.