Guinness Cup 2013: Juventus' Loss a Reminder European Success Will Not Be Easy

Juventus’ stateside trip this summer will not end with silverware following their defeat to Everton in a penalty shootout in the Guinness International Champions Cup.

Following a 1-1 draw in normal time, the reigning Italian champions were dumped into the tournament’s losers’ bracket following the 6-5 spot-kick defeat.

Penalty expert Andrea Pirlo uncharacteristically put his effort wide with the scores leveled at 4-4. Federico Peluso’s sudden death shot was saved by Tim Howard to give the Premier League outfit the win.

Antonio Conte was not unduly traumatized by the defeat. As is typical for a coach in preseason, the Juve boss chose to reflect on the “positive signs” from the performance when speaking to his club’s official website.

In falling victim to a foreign opponent, Conte, however, was given food for thought about his team’s European prospects this season.

Re-establishing Juventus’ pre-Calciopoli prominence in the Champions League (10 appearances in 11 years, including winning it in 1995-96) has proved difficult in recent years. Though Conte’s leading them to two successive Scudetto victories has certainly given them a platform to build on.

The Old Lady of Turin’s quarterfinal exit last season to eventual champions Bayern Munich was nothing to be ashamed about. After over two years absent from European competition (longer for the Champions League itself), they performed impressively during their run.

As quoted by Brian Homewood of Reuters, Conte was pragmatic about his team. While he described them as “three of four steps below” the likes of Bayern, he also emphasized "it doesn't mean we can't compete with them."

This cautiously optimistic rhetoric was Conte’s attempt at not raising expectations too high. Unfortunately, the reality of heading into 2013-14 as Serie A champions with some big-name signings in tow will mean the pressure is on almost immediately.

The arrival of Fernando Llorente and Carlos Tevez in particular will ensure Juventus are expected to hit the ground running in Europe.

Much progress will be made in putting together this season's team before their first group outing. Yet, even at this early stage, the Everton match served as a reminder of the challenges ahead—and they are going to get a lot tougher than the Toffees.

Not only will it be about taking on the myriad tests from across the continent, Juventus have to do so while addressing revitalised challenges to their superiority in Serie A—notably heavy-spending Napoli.

—