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LIVORNO, ITALY – MAY 28: Italian football manager Massimiliano Allegri of Serie A club Juventus talks to the press commemorating the player Armando Picchi outside the gabion before the football match called ‘gabbionata’, the day of his return as Juventus coach in his hometown on May 28, 2021 in Livorno, Italy. For the 50th anniversary of the death of the Italian football player and coach Armando Picchi who captained the Inter known as ‘La Grande Inter’ his hometown Livorno pays a memorial and a series of initiatives including a match inside the gabion, a cage to play football in the bathhouse at Bagni Fiume’ where he used to play Armando Picchi. (Photo by Laura Lezza/Getty Images)
Juventus has their new boss and he is the same person as their old boss; Massimiliano Allegri has officially returned to Turin.
Massimiliano Allegri has already proven himself to be a very talented, scudetto winning manager at the Old Lady. When he was sacked, he had won so many domestic trophies in Italy that winning them did not mean anything, or as much. Similar to France and PSG. Why return?
He was replaced at Juventus by Maurizio Sarri, who also won trophies before being fired. He was not able to survive an early Champions League exit and was replaced by club legend Andrea Pirlo. Pirlo, who had no first team coaching experience, or any for that matter, would of course, also win trophies before being fired.
When rumors began swirling that Pirlo might be getting fired, his replacements were thought to be someone like Zinedine Zidane, Antonio Conte or any other dark horse, tactical manager or genius player one might think of. Instead, Juventus simply went with the boss that they looked best with in recent years.
While I think Max Allegri is a phenomenal manager and someone who likely didn’t deserve to be released from his service in Turin, I understood it. He had done so much there yet didn’t seem to have the ability to bring the team to the next level, which was consistent, high-level Champions League performances.
I did not fault them for wanting something fresh after so long with Allegri. But I sit here and ask myself, why not go on then?
Juventus and Massimiliano Allegri: Easy, too easy
This is the most comfortable fit imaginable for each party involved. It required no bravery from either of them and it leaves both of them back to where they started.
For Juventus, it’s almost like they didn’t even really try. They had two managers, for two years, whom they gave no chance to do anything or grow. It was like fulfilling a mercenary contract in the north of Italy and nothing more. There was no patience, no acceptance and so they could’ve just as well have told their supporters to keep quiet as they gave Allegri more resources to work with.
For Allegri however, I’m sure he has no complaints about returning. Yet why should he be thrilled at winning the domestic treble year after year as though his coaching career was Sisyphean?
Allegri could’ve gone to England, Germany, Spain and anywhere in between. He could be spreading his legacy across Europe yet instead he simply prefers Italy. That he chose to wait for his old job suggested to me that he knew it would be open for him sooner rather than later.
I think that this is a retread. It’s the fourth movie of a series and the first new movie in over a decade. It’s not feel good, as much as it was always inevitable. Juventus is no closer to winning the UCL than the day Allegri left — they are further away if anything.
Allegri can get you a treble in Serie A, and so if Juventus is content with that then that is their business. Can he bring Juventus super deep into the Champions League and to victory? I am not sure and I think that ,eventually, the team would’ve found their Zidane and would’ve made strides. Allegri meanwhile, should be winning trophies in different leagues, not with Juventus again only just to be sacked again.
Both team and coach had to go out and get a bit uncomfortable to find the best version of themselves. They had two years to do so. Both ultimately failed and chose one another instead. This is fair and I sincerely hope that Allegri and Juve do better than during the last stint.
Serie A has gotten better while Juventus has not. Perhaps Allegri has during his time away. Will he get the time his predecessors were refused? Should he get that, then he might shock me and much of the rest of Italy in proving that he can win the Champions League. Until then I declare this remake to be a worse version of the same movie I used to enjoy.
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