ClapWith Massimiliano Allegri leaving Juventus at the end of the season, the bianconeri are already in search for a new manager. Many names are being linked, including Mauricio Pochettino, Maurizio Sarri, Pep Guardiola and Simone Inzaghi.
Antonio Conte was a name that Juve really wanted but with him off to Inter Milan in the summer, they have limited options left considering Jose Mourinho will not manage the Old Lady.
But Sarri, Pochettino and Guardiola are names that Juve seem to be desperate for, with Inzaghi considered to be a Plan B. But considering where Juve want to be, going for any of Sarri, Pochettino or Guardiola will be a mistake.
The Old Lady splashed out 100 million euros on Cristiano Ronaldo with the main purpose being to win the Champions League this season under Allegri. They had the squad to do it but did not have a man who had won the competition many times to lead them through. Considering how Ronaldo would suit a pragmatic system, they thought he’d be the perfect replacement.
It took Allegri about 3 seasons to build this side and take it forward from the pragmatic mould it was in under Conte. But now, with three managers who don’t play a pragmatic brand being eyed, it will be a change in DNA for Juve.
For about ten years now, the club has thrived on playing that way. Be it Conte or Allegri, they have won trophies with that and have become a force because of that. Ronaldo has thrived on that more than thriving on an attacking brand of football. Even at Real Madrid.
A manager like Sarri needs new resources to get the team to play in his own way- Sarriball. It isn’t meant for an ageing side that is very used to playing a defensive brand of football. He needs the players from other clubs who are intelligent and technically adept enough to play that way.
Same goes for Pochettino and Guardiola. While Pochettino can mould players into how he wants them to be, he too took one season to make Tottenham what they are. Guardiola wanted the players he needed at City to make them a big success. He took a season.
Where Juventus stand is a place where they would want immediate results after how they operated under Allegri and how Fabio Paratici and Pavel Nedved wanted Conte.
Indeed, Inzaghi plays a style that is similar to how Allegri wanted his team to play and in the formation that Conte ideally plays- 3-5-2 or 3-4-3. The approach is pragmatic and could make do with the current set of players with certain improvements on the players that the club would have wanted to sell under Allegri.
It won’t require as much as change as the other three managers and while those will be long-term plans, it might not work out at Juventus because of how long they could stick with them before it works. Plus, their DNA might not let that style have as much room as the other clubs might.
