Juventus...TO Pirlo or NOT To Pirlo....

Pirlo is great. I don't want ANYONE to say anything else otherwise. He is a GREAT footballer, and he is one of the very FEW that make me want to get off my lazy backside that's hairy, and play some ball. BUT, nobody is perfect, even though Andrea is close to it (READ HIS DAMN BOOK, IT'S HILARIOUS). However, despite the bearded one being so close to perfection, Juventus have to really think about how to move forward and put Italian football on the map with the other elites...

And the debate as well as the conundrum erupts. Do you stick with Pirlo, the man that can DEFINE a team and see a pass from a billion miles, or do you ditch him and force the team to play as a whole and a lot quicker?

The difference in Juventus without Pirlo is VERY noticeable. The ball is moved around at greater speed, and more players are involved. Juventus look sharper and create a lot more quick chances because of how the ball is zipped around the grass of dreams.


But Vidal and Pogba are no Pirlo. They don't have the immense and AMAZING playmaking abilities of him. When Pirlo is on his game and Juventus play FOR HIM, he cannot be stopped, and the kinds of chances that he creates are ones that the defence never sees. Just ask Lichtsteiner for the amount of times he has run behind defenders and connected with a perfectly weighted looped pass from the Italian.

The thing with Pirlo is that he plays the way he plays, and cannot be changed. You take him as he comes. He will like to spend time on the ball and slow the game down in the way that Riquelme did, trying to control the pace of the game and force it to be played at their own tempo. This has its downfalls, because if you have a tough midfield with high stamina who like to run like chipmunks, then they can hound the you down and restrict the influence you have on the game.

At the moment now, Juventus cannot compete with Bayern, Chelsea or both Madrid teams, and they would struggle against PSG. With Pirlo, their game is far too slow and as good as Tevez is, he is having to do far too much as proper defences will make minced-meat out of Llorente.

But Allegri has to have options and a Plan Z. He has two great midfielders in Pogba and Vidal and Mr. Paul P is a young starlet who is on the cusp of being the next best thing, IF he can fulfil his great potential. So it is down to Massimiliano to try and forge a Juventus that plays a lot more without Pirlo so they can switch things up. Because most teams when they play Juventus will prepare for Pirlo being in the team, and thus find ways to double-team him and take him out of the game. But if you have younger, fitter and more agile players in Vidal and Pogba, they are FAR MORE difficult to nullify and Juventus are a totally different team without the Italian maestro in that midfield.

Pogba in particular is a player that just REALLY gets me going when I see him. His versatility and array of skills makes him such a useful player but also one that can turn the game in the blink of an eye. It's all about coaching, because the talent is there, it just needs to be nurtured the right way, and I am not sure whether Allegri is the right man for it....just look at him for goodness sake....

The Serie A should be wrapped up, but if Juventus want to make that dark horse tag into Champions League contenders, then Allegri has to really experiment with the team and come up with some new blood!

HH