Five ways in which Giorgio Chiellini’s injury impacts Juventus
By John Vaccaro
Juventus becomes mortal again in Italy
Over the last few years, Juventus has looked absolutely invincible in Serie A, but that could change this year. In fact, that almost changed this weekend. Inter Milan and Napoli both made big moves this summer to try and close the gap between them and Juventus and now it looks like those moves could really pay off this year and Napoli they nearly did for Napoli on Saturday.
Like the Disney version of Hercules, Juventus was one drop away from seeing their immortality permanently slip away after Napoli came back from down 3-0 to equalize the match at 3-3. It was 3 different players who all joined Napoli this summer who scored those goals, with Kostas Manolas, Hirving Lozano, and Giovanni Di Lorenzo each finding the back of the net.
If that result had stood or Napoli had snatched a late winner, we would have all week about the downfall of Juventus. It was only a shocking own goal from Kalidou Koulibay that saved Juventus from even more scrutiny.
The scariest part about Juve’s struggles in the match against Napoli is that this might not have even been Juve’s toughest Series A match of the year. They still have to play Inter twice, who have looked like a very different team than we have seen at Inter for the last few years.
They also still have to go to Napoli. These two teams are better versions of last year’s squads and they should only continue to improve throughout the year as their new additions get more experience playing alongside their new teammates and their young players continue to develop. For the first time in a long time, it looks like Juventus might actually have competitors who can end their reign atop Serie A.