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Juventus: 3 keys to success against Chelsea in Champions League

By Jyotirmoy Halder

Juventus' Italian head coach Massimiliano Allegri attends the Italian Serie A football match between Spezia and Juventus on September 22, 2021 at the Alberto-Picco stadium in La Spezia. (Photo by ANDREAS SOLARO / AFP) (Photo by ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP via Getty Images)
Juventus' Italian head coach Massimiliano Allegri attends the Italian Serie A football match between Spezia and Juventus on September 22, 2021 at the Alberto-Picco stadium in La Spezia. (Photo by ANDREAS SOLARO / AFP) (Photo by ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP via Getty Images) /
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1. Moise Kean has to replicate Romelu Lukaku

Moise Kean, Juventus (Photo by Nicolò Campo/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Moise Kean, Juventus (Photo by Nicolò Campo/LightRocket via Getty Images) /

It is a sad reality that Romelu Lukaku used Inter Milan as a ploy to get a move back to Chelsea, his childhood club. Otherwise, it could have been another fun season with the famous “Lu-La” (the fan-made name given to the pairing of Romerlu Lukaku and Lautaro Martinez) in Serie A. Nevertheless, Juventus are facing the threat of the Belgian striker one way or the other.

Signed by Chelsea for a club-record transfer fee of £97.5 million in the summer transfer window, Lukaku has taken the Premier League by storm, scoring three goals from five matches thus far for the Blues. Before Lukaku joined Chelsea, they were already European Champions. Lukaku’s arrival has only made them stronger and one of the clear favourites to lift the Premier League this season.

On the contrary, Juventus signed Moise Kean to somewhat fill the void excavated by the departure of a talismanic Cristiano Ronaldo. From 180 minutes spread across seven appearances (per Transfermarkt), Kean has amassed just one goal, which came in their 3-2 win over Spezia last week.

As Alvaro Morata — Allegri’s first-choice striker — is injured alongside Paulo Dybala and unavailable for the game against Chelsea, the manager has no other option but to field Moise Kean. Now, we can’t expect him to emulate Romelu Lukaku’s every tiny bit of movement. And it would also be too much to ask from him as he, 21, has a long way to go before matching the dynamism of the 28-year-old Belgian. But he must at least try to emulate Romelu Lukaku’s thrusting runs behind the defensive line.

It is likely to be a back three from Chelsea again. As such, breaking their rearguard would not be a child’s play, neither does any of us expect it to be. However, continuous running from Kean and subsequently dragging a defender with him might end up creating space for his comrades to run at. Thus, Moise Kean’s tenacity could break the defence of the Stamford Bridge faithful or at the very least cause some havoc.

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