Bayern won't be scared as Juventus bombs at Bologna

However, for Juventus, this was a worryingly flat performance ahead of next week's Champions League showdown with Bayern Munich. True, there were mitigating circumstances. Having a paper bomb hurled at its team bus by Bologna ultras before the game was hardly the ideal preparation for Massimiliano Allegri's men, who had arrived in Bologna without the likes of Mario Mandzukic, Giorgio Chiellini, Sami Khedira and Alex Sandro. In addition, Paulo Dybala was left on the bench, with Allegri clearly having one eye on Tuesday's visit of Bayern. However, without its creative spark, Juve's attacking arsenal failed to fire. 

After the hysteria surrounding his late winner against Scudetto rival Napoli, Simone Zaza failed dismally to advance his claims for a starting berth against Bayern before being hauled off after 67 uninspired minutes. Alvaro Morata, meanwhile, endured another frustrating evening - it is now three goals in 23 appearances for the struggling Spaniard - and the hope must be that the Champions League will once again bring the best out of a man who played such a prominent role in the Old Lady's run to last season's final.



If Morata cut a forlorn figure at times, Pogba was the personification of frustration. Three times in the space of second-half minutes he threw his arms into the air in despair. First, he berated Stefano Sturaro for failing to give him the ball. Then, he appealed in the vain to the referee for a non-existent foul after being fairly beaten to a bouncing ball by the impressive Amadou Diawara. By the time, the Frenchman was cleanly stripped of possession with embarrassing ease by Anthony Mounier, Pogba looked around for someone to blame until he accepted that he need only look at himself.

Allegri may also wonder if he could have approached the game differently. The Juve boss insisted beforehand that this game was "crucial" in terms of the title race, acknowledging that "Napoli will not give us an inch." Yet his decision to start with star forward Dybala on the bench arguably sent out the wrong signal to the rest of the squad. Actions speak louder than words.

Defensively, Juventus was once again excellent, affording Bologna just one shot on goal, meaning Gianluigi Buffon has now been tested just seven times in his last six Serie A outings. Furthermore, Juventus has now racked up nine clean sheets in a row and conceded just once in its 11 competitive matches in 2016 so far.

However, what will perturb Allegri is that his side did not manage single shot on target at the Dall'Ara. Yes, Bologna have been in fine form of late but this is also a team that had gone seven games without a clean sheet at home, conceding at least twice in five of those fixtures. And yet Juve's blunt attack made Bologna's back line look impenetrable. 




As center half Leonardo Bonucci admitted, "We did well in terms of possession but we were lacking something when it came to the final ball." Certainly, there was a distinct lack of creativity in the middle of the Juventus midfield, with Roberto Pereyra once again underlining that he is not - and never will be - a trequartista good enough to play for Juventus.

Indeed, Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola will have looked at Juve's performance at the Dall'Ara and seen absolutely nothing to fear. The Bianconeri may have suffered a bomb scare in Bologna but what awaits them in Turin next Tuesday night is a far more frightening prospect.