Juventus vs. Nordsjaelland: Bianconeri Attacking Problems continue in UCL draw

Thirty-three shots on goal, nine shots on target and only one goal. Not a promising set of statistics for Juventus supporters. Despite creating chance after chance, Juventus’ barely-hidden issues in front of goal reared their ugly head once again. In a team that has conceded only 4 goals in Serie A play this year, Juventus has yet again struggled to find a consistent goalscoring forward presence.
While their tally of 19 goals is top in Serie A (as is their 4 conceded), Juventus’ top scorers, striker Sebastian Giovinco and midfielder Andrea Pirlo have only 3 goals each to their name. With 12 different goalscorers on the score sheet, the goals have flowed for the Zebrette despite not having a regular goal getter.

In domestic play, the ability to find goals from anywhere in the team is a huge benefit, with provincial sides parking the proverbial bus on a regular basis. However, in continental competition, oftentimes a proven hitman can be the difference between life and death. Last year’s UEFA Champions League competition saw attackers such as Lionel Messi, Mario Gomez, Cristiano Ronaldo and Didier Drogba prove the difference in crucial matches on multiple occasions. In fact, those four players, each with 6 goals or more in the competition, were the leading scorers for each of the Champions League semi-finalists.
Juventus’ attacking issues going into the 2012-13 season went far from unnoticed in Turin. Many attempts were made to improve the attack, with Robin van Persie, Fernando Llorente, Robert Lewandowski and more amongst the names mentioned to don the famed black and white stripes of the Old Lady. However, after many failed attempts to bring in the “top striker” needed, Danish international Nicklas Bendtner was brought in on loan, with Juventus Sporting Director Giuseppe Marotta admitting openly that the towering Arsenal forward was “not the high-profile striker we were hoping to sign.”
With that, the Bianconeri began the 2012-13 season without a bona fide star striker. This season has seen a steady rotation between Sebastian Giovinco, Mirko Vucinic, Fabio Quagliarella, Alessandro Matri, and recently, Bendtner. Admirable quality in depth for the Italians, but no real proven goalscorers of European Championship quality to speak of.
Time and time again, Juventus has found the goals to stay undefeated this season, but the majority of goals have come from their midfield and set piece brilliance. The profligacy shown in front of net is simply unacceptable for a team of this caliber, and the striker issue must be addressed. Should they make it out of their precarious position in Group E (where they currently sit in 3rd place with only 3 points from 3 matches), a top-quality forward must be the number one priority in Turin.