Later today, Juventus will play the first leg of their last play-off against SK Sturm Graz en route to the Europa League group phase beginning September 16th. The Austrians are already 4 games into their top-flight campaign and sit second, two points behind Josko Ried. Because of their early start, we’ll have to be acutely aware of their fitness levels and approach the game with the same amount of determination. More information about this tie after the jump.

SK Sturm Graz is an Austrian football club that was founded in 1909. Graz is Austria’s second-largest city behind Vienna, and the capital of the federal state of Styria. It has a population of 291,890 as of 2010, and has a long tradition as a student city as evidenced by its six universities and more than 44,000 students. In keeping with the city’s student theme, SK Sturm Graz saw most of its success using young players from the club’s academy beginning in the mid-nineties under Bosnian football manager and former player from the former Yugoslavia, Ivan Osim.

Between 1994 and 2002, Osim led SK Sturm Graz to the Austrian Championship in 1998 and 1999, the Austrian Cup in 1999 and the Austrian Supercup in 1998 and 1999. SK Sturm Graz was also featured in the UEFA Champions League in 2000-01 where they won their group against Galatasaray, Rangers, and AS Monaco FC, reaching the second round for the first time. That year the league campaign was less successful – a fourth place finish, the worst under Osim.

Since Osim left in 2002 due to increasing criticism from the club’s President, SK Sturm Graz has never been the same. After some modest European success, the added revenue was never re-invested in the youth academy and was squandered on fruitless talent. Eventually, SK Sturm Graz filed for bankruptcy on September 1st 2006. As of today, the team is coached by German manager Franco Foda, and share a 15,400 seat stadium with their local rivals Grazer AK. Until 2006, the stadium was named after Arnold Schwarzenegger who was born near Graz but was re-named in February 2006 to UPC-Arena.

“It’s a special game for me and will be more emotional than usual,” our very own Austrian, Alex Manninger, told Juventus Channel. “We’re going to play in a beautiful city where football is passionate and the stadium, albeit small, will be packed. Within two days of the draw, the tickets for this game were sold out. For them the meeting with Juventus is the match of the year.”

“Many people have asked me for information about Sturm Graz, but I’ve been away from the Austrian League for a long time. Their Bundesliga only has 10 teams who face each other four times per season. The level of football is clearly inferior to Italy, but our opponents will be more physically fit after a month of official games. They’ll give it their all, run a great deal and try to play attacking football. We must be careful, but I am confident. If Juventus put their superior quality on display, we will return with a positive result.”

SK Sturm Graz (4-4-2) Probable Starting XI: Gratzei; Strandfest, Schildenfeld, Feldhofer, Purcher; Weber; Holzl, Bukva, Muratovic; Kienast, Szabics. Injuries: Midfielder Kienzl

Juventus (4-4-2) Probable Starting XI: Storari; Motta, Bonucci, Chiellini, De Ceglie; Lanzafame, Sissoko, Marchisio, Pepe; Diego; Amauri. Available options: Manninger; Legrottaglie, Constantino, Ferrero, Grygera; Melo, Martinez; Del Piero, Trezeguet. Injuries: Goalkeeper Buffon

Links: atdhe.net [direct match link], rojadirecta.org [homepage], myp2p.eu [match thread].

IERI… OGGI… DOMANI… SEMPRE JUVE!!!

It’s apparently moron week here at the Juventus Offside, as players and agents try to one-up each other in displays of incompetence. Word is that Delneri has sent Felipe Melo to Mongolia for the week, to attempt to keep him out of the contest. FYI- the new official Juventus Offside term for “moron” is going to be Bill Cosby’s favorite term “knucklehead.” So Tiago and Camoranesi’s agents are now knuckleheads.

Tiago has fired a parting shot at Juventus following his move back to Atletico Madrid on loan. The Portugal international seemed to revel in the idea that Juventus couldn’t sell him outright. Tiago has made no secret of his annoyance at the way Juventus have treated him in recent years. Speaking at his second official unveiling as an Atletico player, Tiago said: “Atletico and I are happy, but in the end Juve will be a little less so. I am very happy. It was very difficult for me, but in the end I got what I wanted. I believe that we are much stronger than last year.

The Juventus Offside exclusive on how the prior incident went on.

For someone who has NO personality on the pitch, he has a large amount of it off the pitch. You all may remember when he LOCKED our club President in the bathroom for trying to make him sign with another club. I didn’t understand why he did it the, and I don’t understand why he’s being such a bitch about things now. Tiago has nothing to complain about at Juventus. At one point under Ranieri AND Ferrara, he got his time to prove himself, and failed to do so. He was never verbally assaulted by the fans like Felipe Melo or Z3BINA. And now, we try and offload him to a club he wants to be playing for, and he acts like a complete ass about the whole thing.

Either way, between the Tiago and Andrade experiments, here is a new official policy for Juventus.

There are a lot of comparisons between Delneri and Fabio Capello. They are both cabbage men, as Special 1 TV would put it. They are both Friuliani, which by extension means they are incomprehensible and approximately 82% German/Slovenian. (No coincidence that at Real Madrid/Roma, Cassano had issues with both of them) And lastly, both are strict believers in the 4-4-2. Thus, some Juventus fans have groaned that we’re going to see defensive, boring football ahead of us, though that is not really the case. Below, a run-down on how Delneri likes to structure his team, and how it may apply to Juventus.

Unlikely to see any Roberto Carlos-style fullbacks in the team

As far as the defense goes, Marco Motta outlined Delneri’s philosophy on day one. “Above all, the mister reminded us that we are defenders first.” Fullbacks, particularly, are required to be defensive-minded first, as Delneri likes his defense to be compact, allowing little space to the other team. That also applies to the center-backs of course, and while Chiellini and co will certainly advance on set pieces, we won’t see any Giorgio-as-sweeper experiments in the future. Delneri likes his teams to keep a clean sheet, and that starts with defense. Motta and De Cegie are attacking fullbacks, of course, they are young, but both have spoken of the personal attention Delneri has been giving them. He’s got his work cut out with them, but we can be encouraged with what we’ve seen in preseason thus far.

If the fullbacks are generally more defensive, it is the opposite among his wingers. Delneri has always built his team based heavily on his wingers, be it Manfredini and Luciano back at Chievo, or Ferreira, Langella, and Valdes at Atalanta, or more recently Mannini, Guberti, or Semioli at Sampdoria. When asked about his instructions for wingers he said “between another striker and another defender, I prefer the former.” Indeed, his 4-4-2 in attack switches very much into a 4-2-4, with limited defensive responsibilities for wingers. It is obvious that this choice has influences the mercato, Lanzafame and Martinez are both attacking wingers that can even play in a 4-3-3 up top or as a seconda punta. That isn’t to say he doesn’t want his wingers to track back, during preseason Lanzafame has defended his flank and Pepe has shown his “workmanlike nature.” But between defense and offense, he clearly prefers attacking wingers. This is particularly important when you consider what happens when the ball is moved down a single flank.

Say the ball is moving down the right flank in Delneri’s system. Often, you’d see the right-back make overlapping runs and the left-back holding back to make up a 3-man counter buffer, typically the CBs (if one is forward, say on a set piece, then a CM) and one FB are meant to slow down counter-attacks. In Delneri’s system, I think we’ll often see the right-back providing support, but not making runs constantly in the corner. Instead, you’ll see the left winger running into the box as an additional scoring threat, and the left-back will move up a bit to occupy the space he left. It’s nothing earth-shattering new, but compared to Capello and Ranieri’s 4-4-2, the wingers are given much more freedom to attack the box.

As for the midfield, I think we’ll see a situation similar to Ranieri’s Juve, not as much like Capello’s Juve. Ranieri was criticized for fielding two defensive midfielders, but that wasn’t really ever the case. He basically had one pure central midfielder, and a defensive midfielder with a decent passing ability. Tiago was supposed to be the 2nd, Zanetti ended up taking the place, and in the first year Nocerino was the central midfielder and followed by Marchisio. (Case in point, look at our first game back in Serie A- Nocerino makes it all the way to the byline to cross it to Trezeguet. Later it became apparent he wasn’t really very well rounded.) Last year we desperately needed a regista, as I whined about plenty on this blog, and that’s where Felipe Melo’s inability became obvious. He will suit much better into Delneri’s system, where he will likely play the Zanetti role, of a defensive midfielder with an occasional eye for a pass. The playmaking burden is largely removed from the central midfielders and transferred to the flanks, hence the lack of a need for an out-and-out regista in a 4-4-2, particularly one with a heavy emphasis wingers. Filling the pure central midfielder role will of course be Marchisio, who Delneri said he intends to build much of Juventus around. Sissoko will probably be the (not exactly like-for-like) substitute for Melo, and perhaps Ekdal will remain with Poulsen’s sale as Marchisio’s reserve. I don’t know who he plans to use their otherwise.

Cassano on the bench last January, as Delneri tinkered with the offense

Up top, it’s simple. Delneri uses what works, and that is typically a classic pairing of a seconda punta and a prima punta. At Sampdoria, it was Cassano and Pazzini quite clearly, and it worked excellently. Cassano started the season drifting wide and not entering the box much, but Delneri converted him into a more central, more clinical striker. That’s not to say Delneri is not up for alternatives, though. At Sampdoria, the team struggled greatly in the dead of winter, going weeks without a win. Everyone assumed the team had gone bust, more or less, after an excellent start, and Delneri did the “unthinkable” and benched Cassano, opting for Nicola Pozzi and two prima puntas up top. It’s not pretty, but it’s a much more physical approach and it started to get Sampdoria some points on the board again. At that point, Cassano was reintroduced into the team.

So where does Diego fit into the attack? The media would like to think he doesn’t, but he does. Delneri said, “I would play a trequartista behind one striker, but behind two, never.” Anotherwords, he’s not a fan of the 4-3-1-2 or the 4-3-3, but we already knew that. Everyone however has forgotten the first portion, and that’s where Diego fits in. There is plenty of history, too. At Atalanta, Delneri played a 4-4-1-1 with mercurial Atalanta captain Cristiano Doni as that trequartista, and talented central forward Sergio Floccari as the man leading the line. A switch between a 4-4-1-1 and a 4-4-2 is not difficult, and it simply depends on who is playing. If Diego is, it’ll be more of a 4-4-1-1 with him playing behind the prima punta, rather than around. If Del Piero plays, it’s a standard 4-4-2 as he’s a far more clinical striker, equally adept at banging them in as much as setting them up. At prima punta, Trezeguet, Amauri, and Iaquinta will all fit in naturally. Trezeguet of course offers the poachers angle, Amauri, the power in the air (hoping for some good crosses), and Iaquinta the pace to run onto through-balls.

Delneri gets excited about clean sheets

So what is similar and what is different between this and Ranieri/Capello’s 4-4-2s? Similar is the compactness. The team plays together, like a team, defending and attacking together. There is a strong desire for cleansheets, which will come as a welcome surprise after last season. There are two things that a tactical 4-4-2 side can do, and certainly did under Ranieri and Capello, that Delneri will aim for. The first is an ability to hold out leads. Perfect example of this would be our victories against Real Madrid, where we were under immense pressure for significant portions of the game, but did not crack. Not even when Van Nistelrooy scored. The second, is a strength at scoring, and defending against set pieces. During Capello and Ranieri’s era, the tactical discipline meant we took advantage of many set pieces, at the same time it is hard to think of many we conceded, rather, our weakness was generally on the counter-attack. (particularly for Ranieri) Delneri aims to resolve this by keeping the fullbacks defensive, but it also resolves by the refreshing of the squad. We had a fairly old team under Ranieri, and a lot of times they were simply too slow or tired late in the game to track back fast enough on the counter. I think we will find this refreshing- last season, we were pathetic at defending set pieces and more importantly, if pressure was against us, we would crack, and the floodgates opened. Games against Napoli, Bayern, and Fulham showed when we were under sustained pressure, at some point it would just all come apart. We could not hold our own.

How is it different from their systems? It’s more attacking, and more based on wing play. The fact that we don’t have the world-class wingers we did 5 years ago is a knock, but not a complete failure for the system as wingers who are quick are similarly important to excellent dribblers. 4-2-3-1 fans, rejoice. Given Diego playing deep at trequartista, and the attacking nature (both tactically and amount of goals they’ve scored in the past) of our wingers, the 4-4-1-1 is more likely to resemble a 4-2-3-1 (particularly on offense) than a Capello or Ranieri style 4-man midfield.

How have his teams looked in the past, as far as statistics go? His defense clearly is tight. Last year, Sampdoria conceded the 3rd least goals in the league, only 2 behind 2nd place. In 2008-2009, Atalanta conceded the 8th least amount of goals, though finishing in 11th. It’s no coincidence that the next year, Atalanta conceded far more and were relegated. At both Chievo and Atalanta, however, his first season had a relatively “high” level amount of goals conceded, by “high” I mean that expected, rather than a tight defense. We can probably attribute that to the lag of a team transformation that a smaller team forces, it takes far longer for Chievo to change their team than ourselves. As far as offense goes, Sampdoria didn’t light the world on fire last year, finishing a relatively miserly 9th in the scoring charts, though I would attribute that to a lack of depth for the wings and offense. At Atalanta, his team scored a few more goals than their placing in the standings, which is probably what we should expect. We shouldn’t expect Barcelona-style scoring, but we will score the appropriate amount of goals, assuming Delneri can extract the best from our forwards.

I’ve said enough, but I do have faith in Delneri. He’s a solid coach, and if his mission is to get us into the Champion’s League, he is a good man for it. Like Ranieri, there are questions over whether he can inspire his team with the confidence or odd tactical change necessary to win the league, but that’s not what we’re focused on this coming season. We fight for 3rd, and in March if we’re at Inter’s level, then we can start thinking about the Scudetto. Of course, this is his vision for Juventus- whether he gets us playing it is a whole different situation, and that’s one we’ll simply have to wait for. Personally, I can’t wait for the season to start.

Yesterday, Prandelli’s club career was the spotlight of the post. We looked at his history in calcio and his qualifications for this job. Today, the focus is on just what the man wants to do as coach of gli azzurri. The easiest way to do that might be to break it down, quote by quote.

July 1st: Right after we were knocked out of the World Cup, Prandelli was interviewed. We learned quite a bit about what he thought about our World Cup and what he hopes to turn our team into. Most encouragingly, he realized we had a big problem and we do need to address it.

Cesare did not want to spend much time dwelling on the past, but did realize that he had to acknowledge it. He talked about the World Cup rather vaguely (The less said, the better), but did say that “I want to transform the negativity into something positive.” Although this is a pretty standard line, he admits that he is at the fulcrum of our future; “I want to transform”; it’s well and truly in his hands alone now to change our fortune.

That being said, he knows there’s no point dwindling on the past. “What has happened has happened. I hope to organise a team based on real human values. There are difficulties, but I want to start off right, with determination and the will to do well.”  He knows it won’t be easy, but he wants to start with the fundamentals and re-instate that drive to win that many players seemed to lack this summer. A team- not a collection of individuals- seems to be his ultimate goal here. And he believes that patience and openness are key in this aspect:  ”I don’t have any recipes at the moment, just the will to start well.” The focus is on trying things out and figuring out what works, instead of making a plan and forcing players into it (ie Lippi’s formations). It shows a willingness that Lippi lacked, which is all good news.

As for the players themselves, ”I am thinking about the first call-ups for the game. It would be nice to see good games, as well as the possibility to improve as we go on.” This is important to keep in mind- we won’t see a hugely polished Azzurri come August 10th. It’ll be his first game in charge and the players will be motivated but still probably unsure of exactly what he wants. He’s trying to keep expectations in check. At the same time, ”I wanted to avoid naming names because it’s not fair. Those who will get called are those who deserve to be here.” Simple: the call ups are based on who deserves it. Revolutionary, ironically. Interestingly enough, though, he named Buffon as his ideal captain so he seems a shoe in once he returns from injury.

And going with that, he also revealed that Oriundi will be considered for gli azzuri: “If they have Italian citizenship and they play really well I don’t see why one should not call them up.” Hopefully this won’t re-open the Amauri debate, but it does leave the door open for other foreign players who earn it- although you need more than just talent. ”It will also be based on respect and roles. I hope to take quality players with me.” Now this is interesting because it points out a loophole in the meritocracy: the players will only be called up if they earn it AND respect him. So if you’re in form but call Prandelli uno figlio di puttana, you won’t be going. Which is the way it should be, but as we’ve seen with Terry and other prima-donnas, you have to remind these guys who’s in charge.

Based on what he’s said so far, Cesare is ticking all the right boxes. He wants players with desire. Players who deserve to be there. Players who respect him and the shirt. He wants everyone to look to the future but keep in mind that the team will get better over time. None of this is really new, but I did want to cover it in depth so that everyone knows what to expect from Cesare.

Tomorrow, we’ll have videos of Prandelli’s finest moment as a coach so far. He truly exudes passion and love.

Just as in the last few years, I figured I’d do one giant Pagelle for the entire season before the new season gets too hectic, as I did in 2007-2008, and 2008-2009. I’ve tried to remain objective of course- I’m no fan of Zebina or Melo, but I’m trying to rate them based on their performances, not their fighting with the fans. Besides, they ended up playing terribly anyways. In general, I follow similar numbering systems to the pagelle in Italy:

These judges gave better ratings than I did

4- Dreadful. Consistently producing horror shows and generally completely incompetent.
4.5- Poor.
5- Subpar. Never impressing, and while not terrible, never playing well either.
5.5- Mediocre. Not something a player should be pleased with.
6- Decent.
6.5- Solid. Putting in consistently good shifts, though not exemplary.
7- Excellent. Playing well typically, and capable of brilliance.
7.5- Outstanding. Consistently winning MOTM awards.
8- Phenomenal.
9- Legendary.

Injuries don’t directly factor, as that has weighed enough on their performances as is. So without further ado, the Juventus Pagelle for season 2009-2010.

Cesare Prandelli has had his first press conference as Azzurri coach today, making it really and truly official: The Lippi days are over.

From Football Italia:

Italy boss Cesare Prandelli has explained what he wants from his prospective players at his official unveiling in Rome.

The former Fiorentina tactician replaces Marcello Lippi who left his post following Italy’s exit from the World Cup.

Prandelli started by paying tribute to his predecessor, acknowledging Lippi’s legacy in charge of La Nazionale.

“I want to salute Marcello Lippi who did great things with the national team and leaves an important mentality.

“This is certainly the highest point of my career. I would like to once again thank Giancarlo Abete and the staff of the FIGC. They soon made me feel at home. There are difficulties, but I want to start with the right optimism and with great humility.

“I am convinced that there are quality players in Italy and it’s my intention to propose a qualitative brand of football. The important thing is not to hurry and to know how to plan well.

“I am already thinking about possible call-ups because I want to concentrate on the qualifiers for Euro 2012. I hope to be able to see some good games from Italy quickly.

“All the players who will be called up must understand that they don’t represent themselves, but a nation. The logic has to be that of the group and the attachment to the shirt.”

It wasn’t long before Prandelli was asked whether he would call up the likes of Antonio Cassano and Francesco Totti.

“I don’t want to name names today. The call-ups will certainly be meritocratic. I have an excellent relationship with Totti, but, I repeat, the idea is that of calling up those who deserve it.

“Now my only thought is that of the European Championship. I want to get there with an Italy side that already has its own identity.

“Before Abete’s call I hadn’t thought about the national team, but said ‘yes’ in a second because I am Italian and you cannot say ‘no’ to the national team. I was probably one of the few Coaches who didn’t have great margins to free myself.”

Prandelli also revealed that he has plans for Gigi Buffon.

“I hope that he can become a reference for all of us. It’s my intention to give him the captain’s armband at the next European Championship.”

Really good first impressions from the guy. He wants to call up players based on form and not just because of their names, and he wants to forge a cohesive unit that fights for the shirt. Buffon is all set to become captain, and I can’t think of anyone who deserves it more. So far, so good from Cesare.

We have a friendly on August 10th against the Ivory Coast and then qualifiers after, so we won’t see gli azzurri in action for another month or so.

Also, Francesco of the Italy Offside got up and watched the press conference live. He has a really good, detailed report of everything Prandelli talked about here.

Like this. Only worse.

Felipe Melo, ladies and gentlemen:

«With Fiorentina, my first Italian team, everything at a group worked well, as a collective and individually, the season went well. At Juventus, the group never worked, even if I’m happy with what I did. At all the big clubs, it can happen that you don’t win titles, I hope the next year will be full of victories, hopefully we can do the same as Inter. I take the small portion of responsibility, but the fault was everyones. Here with Brazil, it’s totally different….here there is happiness and full of friendship, people who can help you when you need help. Instead, at Juventus at the level of the group, nothing worked. Brazil is a real group of players…Juventus didn’t have it.”

What an asshat. As if we needed any more reasons to hate him, he just keeps shoving his foot in his mouth. The players responded.

Buffon- “Did Melo really say this? Well, I guess it is a personal opinion, it should be respected as such.”
Chiellini- “On the other hand, I don’t care what he’s said. Who gives a damn, I have more important things to think about.
Poulsen- “For me, things work well at Juventus. Certainly, national teams are special for everyone, because you’re representing your country and you don’t play in the World Cup everyday. But for me, Juventus is also plenty important. Italy is beautiful, and I have always been very well there.”

As Jorid pointed out in the last post, rumors that Del Neri has asked Agnelli and Marotta to issue a fine to Felipe Melo for his comments. Better idea- Sell the fucker. I am so sick of him disrespecting our club, our fans, and our players.

“Rule #1- Burn all bridges possible!”