'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
What’s the story?
Andrea Pirlo, in his recent interview, provided insights to what Juventus actually missed as they crashed out of Europe despite signing the king of the Champions League, Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Italian implied that the Bianconeri lacked quality in the center of the park and despite having a player like Ronaldo upfront, they were unable to get the ball to him or set him up.
In case you didn’t know..
Juventus signed Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid for a staggering amount of €117 million. The 34-year-old was bought by the Italian giants to end their drought in the UCL. The Old Lady have been winning their domestic league with ease for years now but had something missing that is very much needed to win the UCL and that is when they turned their heads towards the Portuguese.
The heart of the matter
Juventus, after avoiding elimination against Atletico Madrid thanks to Ronaldo's heroics, set up a quarter-finals clash with Ajax. The Dutch side looked like the underdogs when coming into the tie but defeated the favorites 3-2 on aggregate that raised a series of questions.
Andrea Pirlo, who played for the Italian giants before leaving in 2015, has now given his opinion on what went wrong for Juventus. He said:
"I think we need an Isco. We're on another level, but you have to win the Champions League."
"Allegri has in mind the team of the future for several months and the midfield is the department to be improved."
"Maybe he lacked quality in the middle having bought Ronaldo and didn't know how to get him the ball. "
"Midfielders are needed to get to the bottom of the Champions League."
The Italian legend pointed out that the Bianconeri missed a player like Isco in the middle of the park who could pull the strings for his side, maintain the tempo, create chances with his exemplary vision and most importantly provide balance between attack and defense. He implied that Juve were ineffective in linking up with Ronaldo.
What's next?
Juventus know what exactly went wrong for their side this season in the Champions League as they hope to learn from their mistakes and have a go at it once again next year. The Italian's have already started bolstering their squad with the addition of Aaron Ramsey who will be joining them in the coming summer.
