21 aprile 2020
Where do you win a lost championship? In 2015/16, of course!
How many decisive situations is a league made of? To answer this question there are no objective and incontrovertible elements, despite critical analysis. If it is true that each match is worth three points and therefore - at least in purely arithmetic logic - all are of the same importance; however, many factors intervene to determine one outcome rather than another. Therefore, what we propose is a trip back to the recent past, to the 2015/16 season, our fifth Scudetto of the eight in a row. It is nothing more than an inventory of important situations experienced in that period that led Juventus to overtake Napoli after 15 consecutive victories.
It was a feat that contradicted any statistical precedent: 45 points out of an available 45, which overturned a verdict that, after 10 days, seemed witten. Within that fantastic comeback, which saw the Lady overtake their competitors one by one, there are at least five moments that have had a strong impact on the outcome of the league win.
THE FIRST (DOUBLE) THRUST
The defeat away to Sassuolo, which left the club in a consequent twelfth place in the standings, is the basis of the redemption that materializes in the derby victory against Torino three days later, courtesy of Cuadrado's goal in the fourth minute of recovery time.
It is a push that is immediately evident in the standings, reducing the distance from the top from -11 to -9: still an abyss, but it is a signal for the frontrunners. But what would have happened if there hadn't been Buffon's monstrous save on Glik's header with the scores level at 1-1? If, half an hour from the end, had Juve found themselves at a disadvantage, would they have had the strength to get out of what would have been a nightmare? It is likely that in our album of memories, Gigi's save is put in the background compared to Juan's celebration, just because he reproduced Pirlo's goal in the previous derby at the Stadium four seconds before the end. But for the purposes of the Scudetto, that is an equally fundamental moment to restart the Juventus machine.
FROM THE COAT AND MORE
The same can be said for two other situations in the final half of the season. The first is well known because it is visually made by Massimiliano Allegri, who got rid of his coat in the final minutes against Carpi. The second is equally important but much less celebrated, and it is Chiellini's intervention in Sampdoria-Juventus 1-2: here in the last moments of the game, with three precious points to be safeguarded in a match, he pulled off a clearance that helped keep in tact Gigi Buffon's unbeaten record.
From there was the start of a series of games where the defensive solidity becomes absolute.
We do not know if the direct clash between Juventus and Napoli was decisive, which determined the achievement of the 15 consecutive victories, and, of course, the overtaking of their rivals on the standings. With 13 matches to play and 39 points to be won, it is difficult to consider the weight of a single match.
The fact remains, though, that in that meeting there are at least two "sliding doors" that contain a part of the fate of the match, in addition to the dazzling goal of Simone Zaza that determined the 1-0 scoreline: Bonucci's rescue on Higuain in the first half that avoided Juventus from going a goal down and Alex Sandro's entry onto the field in the 86th minute in place of Paulo Dybala, as the Brazilian took part in the movement of the goal that was scored two minutes later.
