Emanuele Giaccherini was a Juventus player between 2011 and 2013, and he understands what it means to play for the Old Lady. Since he left the club, he has remained one of its biggest fans, so he continues to follow the team and is unhappy with the way the team has performed this season.
Under Luciano Spalletti, there is much expectation around Juve as the club believes it has a top manager and also has some very fine players who can get results for the team. However, so far, Juve has struggled to prove their worth in matches, and they could end this season outside the Serie A top four again, as was the case for them last season.
Giaccherini’s Grim Assessment
Juve remains one of the top clubs in the country, but they are massively underperforming, and it is hard to believe they will get better soon enough. They have done their best, but this is a dismal Juve team if you watched them under managers like Antonio Conte, and Giaccherini thinks the team has hit a new low as a club.
He said via Calciomercato:
“Let’s just say it’s perhaps one of the most difficult and lowest moments of the last twenty years. Aside from the Motta and Tudor stints, it seems to me that the points in the standings in these first seven games are still lower than in previous seasons. Let’s say that the defeat against Lazio weighed down the environment even more, beyond the standings, because it was a different defeat than all the others.”
(Photo by Chris Ricco/Getty Images)
A Club at a Crossroads
Giaccherini’s comments reflect a deep concern about the direction of the club, as the points tally after seven games is lower than in previous seasons. The defeat to Lazio has added to the sense of crisis, and the mood around the club is bleak.
The comparison to the Conte era is stark, as those teams were built on intensity and a winning mentality. The current side lacks that edge, and the fans are frustrated. The club must find a way to arrest the decline.
Spalletti’s task is to restore belief, but the scale of the challenge is significant. The coming weeks will show whether the team can respond. The pressure on everyone at the club is immense.