Now that the transfer window is officially shut, we know what our team will be for the season. (Or at least until January) The real evaluations of the mercato will come in January, or more likely, by May, but here I will do some preliminary grading. I’ve put a poll for each player as well, so you can weigh in on your thoughts statistically, as well as verbally down in the comments section. For now, we’re going to ignore sales in this factor, so Diego, Giovinco, and Trezeguet won’t factor in.

What Rating Do You Give Marco Storari’s Transfer?customer surveys

Marco Storari: A- Given San Gigi is out until January, we knew we needed a new keeper. The fact that we signed one even better than Manninger, and one who was Serie A’s best performing keeper last year is excellent. The only demerit on my part is 4.5million seems like a hefty chunk of change to spend on a 33-year old reserve keeper.

What Rating Do You Give Simone Pepe’s Transfer?online survey

Simone Pepe: C Keeping Pepe’s rating from being a C- is the fact that he is one of the many that we signed on loan, thus, there is the hope he will not remain, although 2.5million for a loan is more of a “down payment” than a true loan. I understand we need depth, and Pepe fulfills that, but I have been more disappointed that I was expecting to be. Against Bari, seemingly none of his crosses or passes found their man, and he ran a lot, but that’s not good enough. Maybe he’ll come good…but I’m not holding my breath.

What Rating Do You Give Davide Lanzafame’s Transfer?customer surveys

Davide Lanzafame: B For all the talk and lament about Giovinco leaving, there has been little applause for the fact that another Juventus youth product has come home. And he’s grown a lot, too. Lanzafame has been traveling around the peninsula since age 20, when he played a very successful Serie B campaign with Bari. Last year, he had a solid season at Parma, scoring 7 goals in 27 appearances (and only 14 starts) and has returned home to Torino. I’ve watched him since his 07-08 season in Bari, and he has enormous potential. Has a good eye for goal, good pace, and decent dribbling ability. I think he’s been one of the better wingers in preseason, and we’ve only started to scratch the surface of his potential. Let’s just hope he gets playing time.

What Rating Do You Give Leonardo Bonucci’s Transfer?survey software

Leonardo Bonucci: A- His critics will tell you that Ranocchia was better last season, and has more potential. That’s true, and I would have loved to see Andrea come to the good side, but unfortunately Canna’s horror show and looming retirement meant we needed to sign the healthy one. He doesn’t complement Chiellini as well as Ranocchia would (Ranocchia more a ball-playing sweeper, Bonucci more of a hardman like Giorgio) but either way, he’s a very good young player. Bonucci’s had an average start to his Juve career, he makes some hasty/poor tackles, but this is his 2nd season in Serie A, and his 1st at a big club. It will take time for him to integrate. The price tag is high, but I’m f***ing satisfied that finally, we spilled out for a defender.

What Rating Do You Give Jorge Martinez’s Transfer?Market Research

Jorge Martinez: B Martinez has, in my opinion, come under the most unwarranted criticism this transfer campaign. 12mil is a large amount of money, but I would rate him around 10mil, not that bad of a deal for someone who has scored 22 goals in 86 games. Jorge has a nice amount of tricks here and there, and can play both wings. My concerns are primarily the fact that he’s been woefully out of shape at camp and is now injured with a knee problem, but I think he’s a quality “reserve” for the future otherwise. Considering he costs 2mil more than Simone Pepe would eventually cost…well, he’s far more talented. Decent pickup, I think.

What Rating Do You Give Marco Motta’s Transfer?Market Research

Marco Motta: B I’ve always questioned Marco Motta’s skill, it seems like Amauri his entire reputation is riding on a very good 3 months, with his fans ignoring the subsequent disastrous year and a half. I’ve been moderately impressed with what I’ve seen thus far, though. Both his attacking and defending need refinement, I think he’s an upgrade on what we had, and still has potential. It’s up to him to seize it, but paying 5mil for him overall is not a bad deal.

What Rating Do You Give Milos Krasic’s Transfer?online surveys

Milos Krasic: A In a tremendously overpriced market, Krasic is a good signing at 15mil. He’s no Pavel Nedved, but I think Krasic will come good. Adjusting to Serie A from the Russian league will take time, though, so don’t be surprised if he gets the Bidone d’Oro in December and then is widely acknowledged as a master signing next spring. Fast as hell, occasional eye for goal, good crossing, Krasic is a quality signing and one I am very excited about.

What Rating Do You Give Milos Krasic’s Transfer?online survey

Alberto Aquilani: A Of course this grade all depends on his health, but given the 9-hour medical he underwent, can’t blame Marotta for signing him. Very much the type of player we needed to add in midfield, someone with quality and skill, an eye for a shot and a good pass. Marchisio has been in relatively poor form recently, so maybe the Aquilani competition will jog him up, but either way, Aquilani is a creative central midfielder and that’s what we needed this summer.

What Rating Do You Give Fabio Quagliarella’s Transfer?customer surveys

Fabio Quagliarella: B- There’s a lot of questions about this move for me, for example, is Fabio worth 15million euros, and can he finally deliver consistent performances? Or the age old question, can he make it at a big club? Last year was a pretty poor one for Fabio at Napoli, it appears the weight of being the hometown boy and the refusal of certain members of the squad to accept him (Hamsik) hurt his performances. Can he deliver at Juventus, or did we just waste 4.5million euros (and his salary) on a loan?

What Rating Do You Give Leandro Rinaudo’s Transfer?online surveys

Leandro Rinaudo: B I know what some of you will say…Rinaudo is a rubbish player and not Juventus quality. Both are legitimate statements. He’s our 4th CB, which we needed, and on loan with no obligation to buy. Moreso, his poor performances at Napoli can probably be attributed partially to the 3-man defense which he is not cut out for, just as Bocchetti and Moretti look(ed) average at Genoa in their leaky defense. 5mil seems a bit high to sign him for, he’s not worth that much, but again, there’s no obligation and I’d rather see Rinaudo step in to play CB in February than Grygera or Motta.

What Rating Do You Give Armand Traore’s Transfer?online survey

Armand Traore: D Absolutely makes no sense to me. First, why would Wenger let a 20-year old go? Arsenal fans say he is decent going forward, but poor defensively. And that’s in the EPL. I could understand if we had a veteran player, the merits of signing a young inexperienced kid to learn from him, but why reinforce De Ceglie, aka “a defensively raw inexperienced left-back” with another one? Supposedly he played left-wing at Portsmouth to some acclaim, but all in all, this move just makes little sense to me. Not entirely writing this kid off, but from what I’ve been told, we’d probably be better off playing Grosso.

What Rating Do You Give to Our Overall Signings?survey software

Overall Signings: B+ Could the mercato have been better? Sure. But after Aquilani’s signing, I said ideally I’d like a left-back, a center-back, and a striker. We got 2/3, and I’m glad we didn’t sign Borriello in full…in addition to all the previous work Marotta did. The only signings I really do not like are Traore and Pepe, but thankfully both are on loan and should be considered reserves. In rebuilding the team, Marotta perhaps opted for “quantity over quality” but to take a team that finished in 7th place with record amounts of goals and losses, that’s what needs to be done.

What Rating Do You Give Overall to Beppe Marotta?online survey

Beppe Marotta: B- This category kind of meshes with the above, but the above is about signings, this is about overall work. I agree that there are questions over the quality in our squad, but there is no doubt this team should be able to get into the Champion’s League. And I agree that perhaps letting Trezeguet, Diego, and Caceres leave when they could have been influential was a mistake. However, remember Krasic, Storari, Bonucci, and Martinez are the only ones we own, the rest can leave if they don’t cut it this season. The squad is younger (youngest in Serie A), we rebuilt the wings, and offloaded high salary players like Tiago, Z3BINA (finally), Poulsen, Trezeguet, Camoranesi, Cannavaro and (d’oh) Diego, to create a lot more salary space for future signings. Marotta had a LOT of work cut out for him- defense, wings, bring down the age, and offload players, and he did them all pretty well, hard to expect a perfect record in each category. Marotta is in his first season at a big club. He’s got things to learn as well, though I think his negotiating and recognition of the team’s needs are encouraging.

Lifting his first trophy with Juventus

Seven years with the “Duca”
3rd August 2003, Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey: Juventus beat Milan 6-4 after penalties and win their 4th Italian Super Cup. In that match, at the centre of the defence together with Mark Iuliano, Nicola Legrottaglie made his debut with Juventus. Seven years later, “il Duca” spoke on Juventus Channel while clearly feeling emotional: «Seven years with this jersey… for a footballer, wearing such a prestigious jersey for so long is the maximum. That day was beautiful because I lifted the first trophy of my career and also because with my move I put Trezeguet in a position to score the equalizer. It was a good start. The most difficult moments came later but they helped me to improve. Today I am a different person and the merit of all this is of Juve who welcomed me and treated me like a son helping me become a man».

From memories to the present and the next match against Shamrock Rovers, for which Nicola after having recovered from influenza should be available: «It was a rather turbulent week, I was feverish, a cold and a sore throat… a bit of everything. Now I am better and I think that I will be available for Thursday. I don’t know if I will be in the starting line-up. That’s up to the coach to decide. If it is the case I will be pleased, otherwise I will await the other matches».

The feeling with Del Neri is excellent and Nicola has never hidden his admiration for the coach: «AS I said many times before, the coach is the right person at the right moment. If we follow him we will do well but it depends on us. If a player does not believe in the project of a coach and the club, it is like carrying a 50kg weight around your leg, but if on the other hand he does believe the weight is much lighter. I, personally, believe very much in Del Neri’s methods and his way of working. Whether we are breathing fresh air? It is nearly natural after last year: when one comes face to the wall he rediscovers humility. Last year we suffered a big blow and now we have the right attitude to make up».

Finally a thought about Roberto Baggio who accepted the role of President of the Technical Sector in Coverciano: «I am convinced that one of the bad things in this century is ignorance and so when a person who knows the field joins things cannot but improve. Baggio was a great champion, knows football and can bring positive developments to our world. It will be fundamental for him to work on the youths and the families in order to have in the future, people who are not only of high quality technically but also morally».

As regular readers of this blog will know, I have always been a big fan of Nicola “il Duca” Legrottaglie, or “Fratello Nicola” as he’s sometimes called. I’ve been a fan since his debut, and remained one even during his troubled years. During the run-up to Serie B, I thought he was truly gone, and given his indifferent year in Serie B, he looked certain to leave for Bestikas in summer 2007. Thankfully, the deal didn’t go through (same with Chiellini-to-ManCity) and he’s been an important and reliable member of the team since. At 33, he’s still in good shape and good form, last year he ended up benched for Cannavaro both in the Azzurri and Juventus, and I think even Nicola’s haters (of which there are plenty) would admit that it should have been the reverse.

I think there are a lot of people who don’t rate Legrottaglie, and I think it’s all because he’s not a big name and because of his poor form during 2003-2004. Objective ratings from various sites (Gazzetta, Datasport) have put him easily in the top 10 defenders in Serie A during the last 3 years, and I would argue that from 2007-2009, he was in the top 5. For example, last summer’s mercato was hailed as being brilliant, and part of that was signing Cannavaro. Fabio was clearly over the hill, looked it both for Real Madrid and Italy, yet most would have preferred to start Fabio over Nicola. And it’s simple why- the name, and their history.

Legrottaglie’s days as a starter at Juventus are over, but he definitely should be kept around. Strictly speaking of on-the-pitch matters, he is still a very capable reserve. His influence clearly goes far beyond, however. He’s a very positive influence to have in the team, both with young players and new transfers. In the last few years, Chiellini and Ariaudo have credited him as a tutor, Ariaudo said he helped to calm him as well as taught him defense, and Chiellini also said that Nicola helped significantly in the adjustment to playing center-back. New players like Motta, Storari, and Lanzafame have each singled out Legrottaglie for thanks, saying that he has been an important reference to helping them integrate into Juventus.

It of course depends on his fitness, but I for one would consider extending his contract past next summers expiration. Legro might be getting older, though I think we could do far worse than Fratello Nicola as a 4th-choice CB in the years to come.

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.

With training starting tomorrow, the rebuilding of Juventus has not finished, though we are likely to see fewer signings and more sales. Beppe Marotta has been busy for quite some time, wheeling and dealing behind the scenes and converting our team into a younger 4-4-2. Below, a list of transfers thus far.

IN:

Refusing to celebrate his first goal against Juventus.

Davide Lanzafame- (Palermo, loan) Lanzafame, who refused a January move to Juventus in favor of playing time (Paolucci was his replacement, enough said) has come back home to Torino. Originally sold on co-ownership to Palermo as part of the Amauri deal, he spent his first season split at Palermo and Bari, where he first made his name. Last year, he spent the whole year at Parma doing very well in the process, scoring 7 goals in 14 league starts, and putting in 3 assists. (27 league games total) After two years, Juventus and Palermo had to negotiate or risk the envelopes, but chose to renew co-ownership and send Lanzafame on loan to Juve. If Del Neri doesn’t particularly fancy him, there’s always the possibility of him leaving on loan before the summer ends, training is going to be a crucial time for Lanza to demonstrate his maturity and case for playing time.
Question on the Move: It’s positional. Lanza is more of an attacking winger like Cristiano Ronaldo, playing wide in a 4-3-3, as he did at Parma, rather than a “winged midfielder” like Camoranesi. So are we going to play him as a winger in a 4-4-2, or move him up top as striker? I’d assume the former, given that Del Neri likes his wingers more attacking than defensive. Nice move though, as it brings another Juve youth player back to base. Hopefully it goes more like Marchisio and not Giovinco.

Welcome to SampJuve, Marco

Marco Storari- (4.5mil, Milan): Given Buffon’s injury troubles, Marotta swooped in for Milan’s Storari, who played on loan at Sampdoria for the second half of last season as replacement for the injured Luca Castellazzi. Storari will battle with reserve Alexander Manninger for the position of Buffon’s #2, and while Manninger is great, Storari was the highest rated keeper during his loan spell at Sampdoria last season. He signed a 3-year contract with the club. 4.5mil seems a bit high for an aging reserve keeper, but we signed the best. Should Storari displace Manninger as the #2, Alex will officially displace Julio Sergio as the best third-string keeper in the world.
Question on the Move: What in God’s name is wrong with Milan? For the last 2-3 years or so, they’ve had no permanent #1. You can forgive them perhaps for not playing Storari initially, but if I was Milan, I’d have brought Storari home and given him the #1 instantly. Abbiati is good, but Storari has been much better. Instead, they sell him to us and went out and signed, of all people, Marco Amelia, who wasn’t good enough for Genoa or Palermo.
Read Roberto’s profile on Storari here

“C’mon man, we’re both going to Turin, you come too!”

Leonardo Bonucci- (15.5mil, Bari): It’s been a hell of a year for young Leonardo Bonucci. Sold by Inter to Genoa in a mega-exchange for Milito and Thiago Motta, Genoa then sold him on co-ownership to Bari. Along Genoa-owned Ranocchia, the young duo were at the heart of the defense of a surprisingly strong Bari team, conceding the fewest goals in the league as of December. During all this time, Bonucci was always the “second defender” mentioned after the great performances of Andrea Ranocchia, but misfortune struck Ranocchia’s knee ligaments, and thus, there was Bonucci. He continued to put in strong performances, though without Ranocchia, the defense started to unravel a bit more as Bari as a team suffered from the mid-season doldrums. He was called up for the 2010 World Cup, though he never played a minute, there’s no doubt in retrospect he should have played over than man he is replacing at Juventus, Fabio Cannavaro. Juventus was very interested, and negotiated with both Genoa and Bari. While formally the deal is strictly with Bari who signed his second part from Genoa for 8mil last week, I would assume Marotta promised Genoa he’d sell Criscito to them, and thus they agreed to relinquish their share to Bari, who certainly facilitated things for us nicely. (Much easier than Genoa would have) Bonucci has signed a 5-year contract with us. While Bari took up their option for signing Almiron on co-ownership, I wouldn’t be surprised to see them sign the second half of him during the summer.
Question on the Move: Can we still get Ranocchia? I like Bonucci and all, but him and Chiellini are very similar style of defenders, tall bruising hardmen. Ranocchia’s more of a sweeper. (Also, Leo, can you please score against Inter in the derby? That’d be lovely!)
Read Roberto’s profile of Leonardo Bonucci here

Bidding farewell to Catania, one of my least favorite cities in Italy. (no offense meant to any Catanesi here)

Jorge Martinez- (12mil, Catania): I thought Martinez was a smokescreen to get CSKA to lower their asking price for Krasic, and while it might have been, eventually we did go through with the move and sign the Uruguayan. Martinez’s first move to a big league was with Catania the last few years, and he has been one of the consistent stars of the team since. Last season was very impressive, as he scored 9 goals in 19 starts (25 games total) and was linked with, surprise surprise, Manchester City in addition to us. He’s an attacking midfielder with good dribbling skills. Like Lanzafame, he seems to be more of an attacking winger than a “midfield” winger, which again points to Del Neri’s preference for pace and attacking movement on the wings. This is the move that I have the most hesitancy about, as I’m sure is true for most Juventini. 12mil is a fair amount of cash to spill, although it’s probably a fair evaluation of an attacking winger who has been having a few good seasons. Signed to a 4-year contract.
Question on the Move: Will he flop? Serious question, as Uruguayans outside of defense have not had the best of records at Juventus. Fabian O’Neill (for those of you with long memories), Daniel Fonseca, Ruben Olivera…hasn’t gone well. Maybe he can tell Marotta to give ‘ole Martin a call….
Read Roberto’s profile of Jorge Martinez here

No doubting the man has heart…but as Molinaro showed, that’s not always enough

Simone Pepe- (Loan, Udinese): As I imagine is true for many of you, Pepe begrudgingly won some respect from me in the World Cup. His decisions on passing were sometimes atrocious, but he was pacey, determined, and put in a few decent crosses here and there. Not bad for the player that half of Italy saw as the proof of Lippi’s incompetency with the Azzurri. (believe Cannavaro ended up winning that) Marotta got a hell of a signing here, which I do not understand. Udinese gives us Pepe, Candreva, and Iaquinta on a platter, but played hardball with D’Agostino and potentially screwed up his career? There is some definite schizophrenia about their transfer dealings. Marotta got him on a 1-year loan for 2.6mil, and then a fixed option to buy him at 7.5mil. So he’s a bit cheaper than Martinez, actually, and the bonus about Pepe is “Try-before-you-buy.” If he sucks, we wasted 2.6mil and that’s that. Forget the money issue, then we wouldn’t be forever burdened with him like Tiago and Almiron, fruitlessly attempting to ship them out.
Question on the Move: Can he make the step up to Juventus-quality? He seems like a solid winger for a mid-table team, but we’ve got ambitions to return to greatness.
Read Roberto’s profile of Simone Pepe here

OUT:
Cristian Molinaro- (Stuttgart, 4mil): Hooray!
Fabio Cannavaro- (Al-Ahli, free): Hooray x2!
Antonio Candreva- (Udinese, loan return): Eh.
Domenico Criscito- (Genoa, 6mil): Genoa finally snatched the second half of his player registration rights, as we sold him to Genoa partially to facilitate the Bonucci move. Not gonna lie, despite some average performances at the World Cup, I was hoping we’d bring him back and use Palladino as the bait instead. That would have meant we only needed a CB and a RB, now after signing Bonucci we still need to sort both our damn fullbacks out, as we have for the last 3 years. (Marco Motta is not the answer…)
Martin Caceres- (Barcelona, loan return):

—–

Grazie Quags e Pirlo for a little bit of faith, a little bit of skill, a little bit of hope. But overall we deserved to go out. And out we go, with a heavy heart and in shame.

The game has just ended and I’m writing this in the emotional aftermath. The final 15 minutes were the best display of Azzurri emotion, pride, and drive throughout the whole tournament. It was way too little, too late, and had we played that way for all 3 games there’s no doubt in my mind that we would be through.

But it wasn’t meant to be.

——

Best of luck to Cesare Prandelli. He has quite a task on his hands.

Full review up tomorrow.

Over the next week and a half, here at the Juventus Offside we will be profiling Juventini, their characteristics, and what role they play for their national team. It might not be the most useful for regular readers or general Juventus fans, but I think we Juventini are most apt, perhaps, to describe the quality of these players as we watch them week-in, week-out. We’ve done Italy players Gianluigi Buffon, Claudio Marchisio, and Vincenzo Iaquinta. Brazil enigma Felipe Melo, Martin Caceres of Uruguay, Hans Christian Anderson Christian Poulsen of Denmark, today we profile future Juventus and Italy captain and defensive stalwart, Giorgio Chiellini.

Birthplace: Pisa, Italy (yes, the Pisa) though he grew up playing for Pisa’s local rivals, Livorno.

Nickname: Keyser Giorgio (coined by Marco P.), Giorgio of the Jungle (coined by Nnahoj), Tarzan, Chiello, the Schnoz

National Team: Italy, where over at the World Cup Blog, Julian and Paul keep you up-to-date on Azzurri news. (Sister site to The Offside for national teams)

Personality: Chiellini is not exactly your typical young superstar calciatore. Thanks to a Twitter Chat he conducted (translated on the Juve Offside here), we learned quite a bit about him. First, neat that he is so willing to chat with his fans. Despite being a millionaire athlete, he still attends school and is currently about finished with his equivalent of a US Bachelors, and then plans to work on his Masters. His girlfriend is a childhood friend of his from Livorno, and he doesn’t really go out clubbing or anything, just downtown for some dinner. This is pretty apparent in his off-field personality, he’s a pretty quiet intelligent player.

On the field, however, he is a warrior, and a true leader. He’s not afraid of conflict, battles hard, and doesn’t shy from tough tackles or provocations. Chiellini has gained quite a reputation of a hardman, which is kind of funny that off the field he is such a quiet person. A very hard-working player, not a prima donna, and one who battles for his team.

Present and future captain of Juventus (Giorgio will be captain after Gianluigi Buffon)

Estimated Market Value: €25 million.

Preferred Foot: Left.

Media Status: Famous. Giorgio’s rise to fame really came in 2007-2008, the year Juventus returned from Serie B when he was shifted to a center-back having previously been a left-back. He was a colossus, winning the 2007-2008 Serie A Defender of the Year award, as well as winning it the next year in 2008-2009. His first major tournament with Italy was Euro 2008, which began poorly as he accidentally knocked Fabio Cannavaro out of the tournament. After the disaster that was the 3-0 drubbing to the Netherlands at the hands of Barzagli-Materazzi, Italy coach Roberto Donadoni opted for Panucci-Chiellini in the center, and they would concede 1 goal in 3 games against Romania, France, and Spain. (The one goal was a horrific backpass from Zambrotta) Against Spain, Giorgio was a one-man tackling machine and won Man-of-the-Match awards. This was followed by an excellent season the next year, including powerhouse displays against Real Madrid in the Champion’s League. He’s now widely regarded as one of the top 3 defenders in Italy, and probably one of the top 3 in Europe and the world.

Silverware:
With Juventus: Serie B 2006-2007

Strengths: Giorgio Chiellini is a prototype Italian hardman center-back. Unbeatable in the air, fast on the ground, and brilliant in his slide-tackling, Chiellini is very well rounded. He’s very different than Fabio Cannavaro, who largely plays off of an excellent reading of the game. Chiellini is a much taller traditional center-back, an excellent man-marker, and as mentioned, is no slouch when it comes to pace. In the build-up to the 2009 Confederation’s Cup, it was found in the Italy squad that Chiellini was the fastest sprinter. He’s well known for his excellent slide tackles that often level an opponent, playing tough is part of Giorgio’s game. Yet this doesn’t really weigh on him physically- Chiellini has one of the best injury records at Juventus, which is no small thing. His most serious injury the last 2 years or so has kept him out a maximum of 3 weeks or so.

Weaknesses: Chiellini is one of the best defenders in Italy, Europe, and the world right now, so he doesn’t have a whole lot of weaknesses. He does enjoy going forward and joining the attack, he is an excellent goal threat primarily in the air. Generally, he is not caught out of position on this, though it of course does occasionally happen. One thing that could improve is Chiellini’s distribution, he is certainly no defender who builds up play, but that’s not really his job. He’s not quite as good as Cannavaro in reading the game, but he makes up for it with excellent last-ditch tackling. Occasionally, he does make a rash challenge, but that’s to be expected for a player who is so prolific with the slide tackle.

After scoring in the local derby against Torino in the 82nd minute, the game finished 1-0.

Status on Club Team: Building block for the future. Along with Gianluigi Buffon and Claudio Marchisio, Giorgio Chiellini has been one of the most reliable and consistent performers for Juventus the last few seasons, and it’s no surprise that the three have been named as the backbone on which Juventus will rebuild.

2009-2010 Club Season: Juventus were dreadful this season, but Chiellini wasn’t. Abandoned all too often by consistently dreadful wingbacks and an indifferent Fabio Cannavaro, Chiellini is one of the main reasons the season wasn’t any worse. Our defense leaked an unprecedented (for Juventus) amount of goals, but I can’t really think of one that Chiellini was directly responsible for.
Status in National Team: Starter, and probably future captain. Chiellini got first call-up to the national team in 2004 at age 20 (throwaway game against Finland) but didn’t really get regular call-ups until 2007-2008, he was never really in consideration for the 2006 World Cup. I called that Chiellini should be a starter at Euro2008, but it took a 3-0 humiliation for Donadoni to draft him in. Ever since, he has been an undisputed starter and star for the national team, and it’s not an exaggeration to say he very likely could be starting in the next two World Cups as well.

An unlikely duo in 2007-2008 considering Chiellini was a raw left-back and Legrottaglie was on his way to Turkey, but ended up being the best partnership in Serie A from 2007-2009, until Cannavaro came along and ruined it. As Chiellini said, “He [Legrottaglie] helped me a lot, to teach me specific movements when I started as a center-back, we can play now with eyes closed.” (except Ferrara was choosing Cannavaro over Legrottaglie)

Expected Performance for National Team: Hero. Italy’s defense can be a bit on the slow side, with Zambrotta and Cannavaro still starting, but Chiellini is fast. A lot of question marks have been made about these defenders, so expect Chiellini to be bailing them out and in crucial games, have a brilliant performance. He’s never disappointed for the Azzurri thus far. Euro 2008 was sort of his “coming out on the European scene” party, this World Cup could be the time when the whole world sees him as one of the best.
Random Fact: Giorgio Chiellini’s best friend at Juventus is fellow quiet left-back Paolo De Ceglie, who is his roommate on away trips. (Find more interesting facts about Chiellini at his Twitter Chat)

Another random fact is that Chiellini scored 4 goals this season, 1 less than our wasteful Brazilian forward Amauri.

In one word: Colossus.

Send ‘em flying, Giorgio!

YouTube Comp with Questionable Music:

YouTube Comp of Chiellini’s first huge game, Juventus-Inter, November 2007)

Marked the shit out of Ibrahimovic.

YouTube Comp Without Terribly Questionable Music:

World Cup Player Profiles and Other Links:
#1- Gianluigi Buffon
#2- Claudio Marchisio
#3- Felipe Melo
#4- Martin Caceres
#5- Fabio Cannavaro
#6- Vincenzo Iaquinta
#7- Mauro Camoranesi
#8- Christian Poulsen
#9- Giorgio Chiellini

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I know this is the Juventus Offside and not the Italy WCB, but I’ll probably be venting my ramblings here anyways during most of the World Cup. Overall, I was pretty pleased with the game. Paraguay is a tough opponent, they play physical, defensive, very Italian-style tactics which saw them defeat Brazil and Argentina in qualifying. Without a doubt, the best team in our group and we probably deserved to win by a bit. We just need to take it to Slovakia and New Zealand. Full thoughts after the jump.

Italy started out with a 4-2-3-1 that worked well enough in the beginning portion of the match, but after 40 minutes or so, Paraguay had figured it out, and the next 20 minutes or so saw the match drift into Paraguay’s hands. Marcello Lippi made timely and smart subs- the Marchisio substitution which many groaned at wasn’t sacrificing Marchisio for Camo, it was a direct shift to a 4-4-2. It worked well for much of the match, and I think Lippi might give up the 4-3-3 and 4-2-3-1 experiments and go back to something Italy knows.

Some interesting stats from ESPN.

• Neither team was crisp passing the ball, as the 67.0% combined passing accuracy was the lowest total in the past two World Cups by more than 5% (second-lowest was 72.1% in the England-United States match on Saturday). Italy’s 69.9% passing accuracy was its second-lowest since 1966 and its lowest in 40 years. Paraguay’s 63.2% passing accuracy was the 10th-worst mark ever over that time period.

• Paraguay is just the 18th team to create two or fewer scoring chances (when a pass from a teammate leads to a shot) since 1966 and one of just five to do so and score a goal.

• Italy is 5-0-3 in its last eight World Cup games and are on a 10-game unbeaten streak against South American sides.

• Eight of Italy’s last 13 goals in the World Cup have come from set pieces.

De Rossi- “STOP SAYING ROMA LADRONA!”

Personally, I was impressed by Montolivo and Pepe today. Pepe worked hard and put in some good crosses, sometimes his final ball was (exceptionally) poor, but still was a protagonist. Montolivo, who there have been rumors Juve is interested in, was class in midfield, winning balls back and putting some excellent passes in, although his shooting is Candreva-ish. (weak) Criscito didn’t have a stellar game, but he looked good enough at left-back and moved forward well. I’ve never had a high opinion of Pepe, but there’s no doubt he at least merits a loan, his price only rose today and we’ve already got him. Criscito should be a priority to play left-back next season for Juventus.

The 4-4-2 had more stability and most importantly, players playing in their right position. Gila failed miserably as a target-man in a 4-2-3-1, while there wasn’t much service it’s implied that he’s supposed to be a point of reference for the attack, knocking down headers and winning balls and dishing them to his teammates. This is something Amauri does very well, but of course being a forward is much more than that. Iaquinta and Marchisio were both also fielded out of position in the attacking trident, and it was very noticeable. They played opposite of where they need, Vincenzo can play up top or in a 4-3-3, but not withdrawn. He can’t cut into the middle, which the explosion of inverted wingers has shown the importance of, and he’s just not effective there. Marchisio showed that trequartista is probably not the right position for him, or at least not in a game where the opponents are happy to sit without possession and make Italy come at them. It might work in a more possession-balanced game, but he still should be playing deeper as a central midfielder.

Everyone recognize our ole buddy on the left?

The 4-4-2 worked alright, but I’d go for a 4-4-1-1 (or 4-5-1, depending on how you look at it) as follows:

Buffon
Zambrotta Chiellini Cannavaro Criscito
Camo/Maggio Marchisio De Rossi Pepe
Montolivo
Pazzini

Pazzini is one who thrives on service, and I believe with the amount of crossing and throughballs this formation provides, the best defenders in South Africa this summer would have trouble keeping him off the scoresheet. Montolivo would be given a position more like Diego/Sneidjer and less like a classical trequartista, he would have tactical freedom to drop back to play more of a regista. He looked good today roaming around.

The solution to the Azzurri’s attack?

Ultimately, I’m satisfied with the performance. Italy looked far better than against either Switzerland or Mexico, and against a better, very tactical opponent. The lack of creativity up top is worrying, and that was my primary concern in the build up to the World Cup, but I think a 4-4-1-1 would solve much of it. The defense looked shaky at times, but not bad for a first game out, and honestly, Paraguay very rarely tested either of the keepers, indeed they had a grand total of one attempt on goal (which scored) and hadn’t looked like scoring before that. Italy had 57% possession, had 10 shots and 5 on target. If we perform similarly against Slovakia or New Zealand, we should certainly win.

LE PAGELLE:

Buffon: s.v.- Really had nothing to do aside from pick the ball out of the net. Worrying that his back injury is flairing up, Marchetti is good, but do you expect him to make saves like this?

Zambrotta: 6- Impressive, considering his Milan form. Defended well enough and got up on occasion, not 2006 form, but good enough to keep in the XI for me.
Cannavaro: 5.5- Started out very strongly, reading the game brilliantly and outjumping players he had no right to, characteristics I described in his World Cup Profile. Bad mistake for Paraguay’s goal, and after about the 65th minute he started to look more and more shaky. Not a horrible outing, but not too confidence-inspiring either.
Chiellini: 6.5- Nothing outstanding, but looks assured in the back for almost the whole game.
Criscito: 5.5- Looked nervy on a few occasions, but it’s this kids first game in an international tournament. Benching him would be as stupid as sending him to Genoa after he gets beaten in his 4th Serie A game ever. Which we did. I hope Lippi doesn’t make the same mistake. Not sure why he’s receiving so much criticism, he more or less held his own defensively, moved up supporting the attack, and wasn’t ever really horribly caught out of position. I still want him back at Juventus.

Referee wasn’t that great today. Called for a lot of fouls when the player got the ball. The free kick Paraguay scored off of was not only not a foul, but a Paraguayan handball.

De Rossi: 6.5- Re-energized after his goal and the switch to the 4-4-2. Didn’t look comfortable in the first half, but played excellent in the second.
Montolivo: 6.5- His shot is weak like Candreva’s, but I liked Montolivo’s performance a lot today. He’s had a reputation like Aquilani of a player who never grew up, one who goes missing for long stretches of time, but Montolivo was omnipresent. Good passing, fought well enough to get the ball back, it was a very solid display from the Fiorentina vice-captain. Didn’t exactly have this kind of finish on his breakaway, though.

Pepe: 6.5- Worked hard, put in some excellent crosses, and looked like he gave a damn all match. Some poor decision making in the box, but it’s the World Cup and it’s his international tournament debut as well, understandable. I liked that he was equally competent as a left or right winger, that is a very important versatility.
Marchisio: 5.5- As I said, he doesn’t really work as a trequartista against a team that defends deep. Sacrificial lamb to switch to a 4-4-2, I think had Lippi chosen to take De Rossi off and drop Marchisio back, he’d have had a much better game too.
Iaquinta: 5- Played too deep in the 4-2-3-1, improved a bit when he moved up to striker, but not that great of a game. Still, I’d rather him play than Gilardino.

Gilardino: 5- Static off-the-ball movement, didn’t really get into great position. Starved of service, but didn’t really play the target man role.

Lippi: 6.5- The team started well, then Paraguay figured the formation out. Lippi showed something we’ve been lacking at Juventus for a while- substitutions and tactical changes that reversed the flow of the game. It started drifting out of the Azzurri’s hands after a bright start, but his switch to a 4-4-2 and substitutions put it back in the Azzurri’s hands. He still needs to sort out the offense.

Grazie, Daniele

FORZA AZZURRI