Juventus: What We Have Learned so Far About Conte's Juventus Team

Antonio Conte is known as a tactician that loves attacking football and although Juventus haven't been scoring too many goals in the two serious friendlies they have played, bit by bit we can see a new Juventus side shaping up.

There has been talks about Giuseppe Rossi, Michel Bastos and Jose Antonio Vargas joining the team but as the friendlies are starting to show, only a second striker would be needed to shape up the first team.

The game against Club America special showed everyone what Conte is trying to do with this team.

I have analysed these two games and I will explain all the change that the coach is making in the team throughout this slideshow.

Formation

When Conte took over, there was talks about him using an attacking 4-4-2 or a free flowing 4-2-4 shape as his main formation but after some training and a couple of friendlies, it has become obvious that Alessandro Matri and Fabio Quagliarella can not play together to well and so Conte has switched to a 4-2-3-1.

Since the switch, Del Piero has been used as the man behind the main striker, which can be either Matri or Quagliarella, and since the captain is probably too old to play every game, this means that Juventus will have to sign another second striker.

Pirlo is a perfect fit for the deep play maker position in this formation and the other spot will be filled by a more combative midfielder to cover the defence. (Marchisio, Vidal, Sissoko or Pazienza)

There aren't many proven options on the left of the creative 3 behind the striker, but Christian Pasquato did very well in that position against Club America and if he keeps up the good work, Conte might be happy to let the youngster play there. Other options in that position are Marchisio and Vidal who are both central midfielders but are more than able to play in the position and also Quagliarella can play in that position and with his shooting ability, him and Del Piero would be very dangerous from behind the box. 

Passing

The main change in the way Juventus have been playing in the preseason is in the passing. Conte has been very strict on the players about keeping the ball and passing it on the ground.

From the moment Juventus have the ball, no matter where on the pitch, they are asked to pass it short and quickly. There is one player that has been allowed to pass however he wishes and that is Pirlo, who is one of the best when it comes to passing, whether its long or short passing.

During this season, look for Juventus to have at least 55 to 60 percent of the possession in most games. Starving the opposition from possession is both an offensive and defensive move and will help Juventus concede less goals.

You will also notice that there will be less crossing from deep, since Juventus have only one striker to aim at. Crosses will most likely come in from further up the pitch (around the opposition box) and will be drilled in rather than long, high crosses. This will encourage the attacking trio behind the striker to make let runs towards the goal and try their luck with volleys.

By mixing the short passing, the drilling crosses and the accurate long passing of Pirlo, Juventus can play attractive football, create chances and also keep the opponent at bay. 

Movement

The movement of the players will also be very important to Conte's Juventus. The expected movement of the players are as followed.

Striker: will stay on the defenders' shoulders and try to beat the offside trap as well as pulling the defenders around to create space for the other plays.

Second Striker: will make diagonal runs between the opposition defenders and midfielders to make some room for himself to shoot or to give the killer last ball.

Wingers: will try to run close to the sidelines to beat their marker or will cut in and open up space for the full backs to run into.

Deep Play maker*: will stay deep during build-up to have more time on the ball and will move closer to the box when the ball is in the opponent's final third to offer a shooting option.

Combative Mid*: will drop deep between the two central defenders to create a back three when the team is in possession and will look to break up the opposition play.

Box-to-Box mid*: will move around the center of the pitch during build up and will make late runs to the box to become an extra target from crosses.

Full Backs: will try to overlap when the wingers cut in and will move up to support and offer a passing option if the winger moves close to the sidelines. The fullbacks might also make late runs towards the box to take a shot on if the wingers pass back to them.

Central Defenders: will stay put and concentrate only on defending when the team is winning, and one of them will probably push high up the pitch to offer extra height while the team is losing.

Goalkeeper: will move towards the edge of his own box to offer a passing option and will also become a sweeper if the team is very high up the pitch.

*only two of the three mentioned central midfielders will fit in the team.

These movements may defer depending on the opposition's strengths and weaknesses and also depending on which players are in the positions.