Fiorentina 0-0 Juventus: 3 Talking Points | Serie A 2019/2020
Fiorentina hosted defending champions Juventus in a matchday 3 clash at the Artemio Franchi Stadium in Florence.
The visitors, sporting unique white shorts with red shorts came into the fixture having won their opening two fixtures, and have been dominant against the Viola in recent years, winning nine of the last ten fixtures between them.
Juventus would have been looking to make it three wins on the trot, and had the presence of new coach Maurizio Sarri who took his place in the dugout for the first time since being announced as the Bianconerri manager over the summer.
In what was a highly tactical and cagey fixture, neither side could find the winner, and a stalemate was a fairly balanced result on the balance of the run of play.
Here, we shall be taking a look at three talking points from the game.
#3 Defensive frailties remain an issue for Juventus
It is widely common knowledge that Juventus have won eight Scudetti on the trot, and most of their success has been founded upon defensive stability, with Juventus' backline over the years haven't been near impenetrable.
However, in recent years, their defence has looked less assured, with Leonardo Bonucci looking a shadow of the player he was after returning from his one-year spell with AC Milan.
The one man who has remained omnipresent in the Juventus rearguard through the years has been Giorgio Chiellini, and the Juventus skipper is the definition of reliable.
The 34-year-old, however, pulled up with an ACL injury sustained during training at the end of August, and the Juventus backline has not looked the same in his absence.
There was a plethora of errors in the victory over Napoli, and it was more of the same against Fiorentina the record Serie A champions would have left Florence empty-handed but for some poor finishing from Fiorentina.
Of particular concern was the performance of Mattijs de Ligt. The 19-year-old was culpable for a number of goals conceded by the Partenopei a fortnight ago, and he followed that up with another substandard display today, being caught out on a number of occasions, while also failing to track the runs of the Fiorentina attackers.
With Chiellini set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines, the spotlight would be placed on Bonucci and de Ligt, and they would do well to improve their performances.