6 favourites for the Champions League: Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and the chances of an English success
Juventus
The Old Lady lost two world-class defenders in Leonardo Bonucci and Dani Alves during this transfer window. They have strengthened the attacking areas by bringing in Federico Bernardeschi and Douglas Costa. Also, Blaise Matuidi bolsters their midfield significantly. However, they rely on a strong defence to absorb pressure in stages during big games. Weakening this area significantly affects the team as a whole.
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They are in a similar situation to when they lost the Champions League Final in 2015 because they had to rebuild then due to losing a few key players. This didn’t stop their domestic domination, and it took Pep Guardiola’s Bayern side to beat them in Europe. Therefore, they shouldn’t be written off, but Bonucci was such a key player for their style of play.
Domestically, they have started well with a comfortable 3-0 win over Cagliari. They were never going to be the toughest of opponents, but the individual performances of Paulo Dybala and Miralem Pjanić were still impressive.
In Max Allegri, they have a talented coach and an expert tactician. Therefore, they are similar to Atlético Madrid in that they will be a hard team to beat, but they are unlikely to be as strong as last season.