Juventus Lose to Sampdoria in Serie A Finale Without Cristiano Ronaldo

Sampdoria made sure Massimiliano Allegri ended his tenure as manager of Juventus on a sour note by beating the Serie A champions 2-0 at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris on Sunday. 

Goals from Gregoire Defrel and Gianluca Caprari were enough to punish Juve for playing without the rested Cristiano Ronaldo.

The result marks a sad end for Allegri, who is set to leave this summer after guiding Juve to five straight titles.

The refreshed starting XI was the 38th combination Allegri has used in the league this season, according to Football Italia. Trust was placed in players who haven't always delivered this season, with the mercurial Paulo Dybala a prime example:

Effects of the changes showed as Juve plodded through most of the first-half exchanges. It didn't help Moise Kean was finding it difficult to lead the line.

The 19-year-old couldn't hold the ball up and didn't seize the few chances that came his way, misplacing a header after meeting a cross from Matheus Pereira. It also didn't help that Kean got so little support, with Dybala again on the fringes of a game.

Most of the industry came from winger Juan Cuadrado on the flanks, with not enough runners breaking from the heart of midfield. It all added up drab football that to some served as an indictment of the outgoing Allegri:

Instead, it was the home side showing the endeavour. Sampdoria went close through Gaston Ramirez, while prolific 36-year-old Fabio Quagliarella was proving a nuisance against his former club.

Italy's top scorer failed to add to his impressive tally of 26 goals when he shot wide after being played in by Ramirez 10 minutes before the break.

Reported Arsenal target Dennis Praet was also catching the eye. The Belgium international has been scouted by the Gunners, per Mail Online's Jonathan Spencer, and he ran midfield against Emre Can and Rodrigo Bentancur.

The pattern of play hardly altered for the better in the second half, even if Dybala became a little more involved. His shot from the edge of the area seven minutes after restart crept over the bar but did cap one of Juve's few flowing moves on the day.

Kean thought he'd won it 10 minutes from time after being played in by Manolo Portanova, but he was flagged offside. Juve were far from impressed, but video review upheld the decision.

There was still time for Praet release Karol Linetty in behind the Juventus defence, but the Poland international fluffed his lines.

Juve's pedestrian performance was finally punished when former Southampton striker Manolo Gabbiadini picked out Defrel with a fine cross. Unlike Linetty, the Roma loanee didn't waste his chance to settle the game.

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Caprari's free-kick ended the Bianconeri's misery and offered a hit of the scale of the work awaiting Allegri's successor. Refreshing a team around 34-year-old Ronaldo and creating a group good enough to add UEFA Champions League success to domestic dominance will be no easy task.