“This Is Not a Team” – Juventus Defender to Manager After Loss Without Cristiano Ronaldo

Juventus are in a spot of bother right now after their horrible start to the Serie A season. On top of their horrible results on the pitch, things are looking even bleaker off it. The departure of their talisman Cristiano Ronaldo is hurting them in more ways than one.

Ronaldo recently left the club to rejoin Manchester United. While Juventus do get his massive wages off their books, they also lose the player whose goals helped qualify for the Champions League.

Under Massimiliano Allegri, things are looking bleak as Juventus drew to Udinese in the first match of the season after Ronaldo’s late winner was called offside. However, things worsened when they lost their second match to newly-promoted Empoli.

During the match, Juventus center-back and captain Giorgio Chiellini was seen talking to his manager Allegri. “This is not a team,” the defender said as they looked at the sorry display in front of them.

It’s yet to be seen how the players respond in the next game, but things don’t look good for them. The financial ramifications of losing a global star like Ronaldo are bad enough, but their problems on the field look worse than ever.

The downfall of Juventus and Cristiano Ronaldo in 2020

The Italian club ended the 2020/21 Serie A season in fourth place, staying ahead of fifth-place Napoli by one point. This meant that while they do get to play in the UEFA Champions League, their streak of winning 9 Serie A titles in a row was broken.

Manager Andrea Pirlo was mostly blamed for the team’s performances but other than Ronaldo, no one else was consistent enough to start for a club of this stature. Ronaldo ended his Serie A campaign with 29 goals, winning the league’s top scorer award.

It’ll be interesting to see who steps up to be the regular goal-scorer after Ronaldo’s departure. The club could utilize this opportunity to transition to a more cohesive playing style. Whether Allegri is the right man for that job, however, remains to be seen.

Read More: BARGAIN! The Shockingly Low Amount Manchester United Paid for Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus