Juventus Treble Dream moves closer

The Bianconeri won a 10th Coppa Italia crown, and they have more than just their much-praised first XI to thank for their success

Two down, the big one to go.

Juventus are on the verge of a historic treble after collecting the Coppa Italia on Wednesday, with Alessandro Matri ensuring that the entire Bianconeri squad will
receive their fair share of the limelight if they do go on to beat Barcelona in the Champions League final.

The 2-1 success over Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico was a victory for Massimiliano Allegri’s approach to the task of making Juve competitive on all fronts. Whereas his predecessor Antonio Conte was renowned for sending out his first XI as often as possible regardless of the scenario, Allegri has been more conservative but more trusting of his players.

He has afforded Roberto Pereyra plenty of playing time, has given the likes of Simone Padoin and Stefano Sturaro a fair share of starts. He has had no quarms about resting his main men when the time has been right. On top of that, he has gladly switched formations to suit the demands of the occasion and to benefit those he has inserted into the line-up.

Even ahead of the Coppa Italia final there were questions asked of his decision to start Marco Storari rather than Gianluigi Buffon despite the former Catania and Milan goalkeeper having started every game in the competition this season. Although Storari was beaten in the fourth minute by a scuffed header by Stefan Radu, he led from the back superbly throughout.

Looking at the shape of the Bianconeri backline, you would have been forgiven for thinking Buffon – one of the world’s greatest ever organisers – was the man donning the gloves. And when he was just about beaten soon after extra-time had begun, Storari had covered a Filip Djordjevic effort which hit both posts and cannoned back into play.

Moments later, Matri fired home the decisive goal. It was only his second strike since returning to the club to become the fourth-choice front man following the departure to Toronto of Sebastian Giovinco. This was a game which reminded the rest of Italy that Juventus don’t just have the best team, they have the best squad.

Their reserves have what it takes to contribute in the big games too, with the losses of Claudio Marchisio and Alvaro Morata to suspension having no lasting effect thanks to the significant strength in depth. Much is said of Andrea Pirlo, Paul Pogba, Arturo Vidal and Carlos Tevez but the first three have missed decent chunks of the 2014-15 campaign to little consequence.

It became a huge talking point across the country when Juve shirked the custom of donning gold stars on their shirts after securing what they consider to be their 30th Scudetto in 2012. With Wednesday’s result, they will now be invited to wear a silver star to represent their record 10 Coppa Italia triumphs.

There will doubtless now be a conversation within the boardroom at Corso Galileo Ferraris to decide on the politics of taking up the invitation, but if there is a hint of silver added to the black and white next season then it will be a reminder of the depth of quality that the current Juventus squad has available.

When they head to Berlin on June 6, the likes of Storari and Matri are sure to be left on the bench at the very least. But they have helped Juve to continue to taste that winning feeling. They are on a seemingly unstoppable roll.

Bring on Barcelona!