Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Player Ratings: Maccabi Haifa 0-1 Juventus


After the Bianconeri secured all three points in their Champions League encounter, Goal.com was on hand to run the rule over the players on show...


Nov 3, 2009 10:35:16 PM

MACCABI HAIFA

Davidovitch: 7.5
- He made several good saves to stop the Bianconeri from taking an early advantage and would have kept out the goal but for a deflection.

Meshumar: 6 - Gave away a number of fouls and struggled to cope with the visitors' attacks in the first half.

Teixeira: 6.5 - Generally kept Amauri quiet, but will be disappointed with the slack marking for the goal.

Keinan: 6.5 - As with Teixeira, he prevented Amauri from having many chances but some of his marking was very suspect.

Masilela: 6.5 - He bombed forward on many occasions and caused Poulsen to drop back and help Caceres, but many of his crosses were found wanting.

Katan: 6.5 - Poor in possession and really missed Golasa's creativity alongside him in midfield. Failed to really impose himself in the final third.

Boccoli: 6 - Covered a lot of ground before being taken off with 20 minutes to go, and consequently missed Maccabi's most dominant spell of the match.

Culma: 4.5 - Struggled to deal with Diego and lost the physical battle with Felipe Melo before losing his cool before the break. Substituted at half-time.

Osman: 6.5 - Worked really hard for his side and looked exhausted by the final whistle. Tried to test Buffon from range, but found all of his shots blocked.

Dvalishvili: 5.5 - No lack of effort but had few chances - Buffon denied him superbly in the 30th minute. Seemed to be carrying a knock and was substituted on 55 minutes.

Arbeitman: 5.5 - Not involved enough, and was too slow to take advantage of the chances that he was given.

Substitutes:

Ghadir: 6.5 - Far more effective than Culma, and his pace was a real threat to the Bianconeri backline in the second half.

Refaelov: 6.5 - Given just over half an hour to make an impression, and caused Juventus a lot of problems down the left hand side.

Zaguri: 6 - Not given long enough to make an impact on the game but was comfortable on the ball and looked to support the strikers.


JUVENTUS

Buffon: 6.5 - Made a superb save on the half hour, but in truth had very little to do.

Caceres: 7 - He got stuck in and contributed well in attack. Picked out Camoranesi perfectly to set up the goal.

Chiellini: 6.5 - Hounded the Maccabi strikers and cleared a number of set pieces to keep the pressure off the Bianconeri as the hosts began to dominate in the second half.

Legrottaglie: 6 - Virtually anonymous. Did nothing wrong as he deputised for Cannavaro, but would have struggled against better sides.

Grosso: 6.5 - Very defensive performance as the majority of Juventus attacks went through the middle rather than down the flanks. More involved after the introduction of De Ceglie.

Melo: 7.5 - Won the ball countless times in the middle of the park and was impeccable in possession. Slightly quieter second half after picking up a booking in the 36th minute.

Poulsen: 7 - He was not on the ball as much as Melo, but he hassled and harried the home side as he covered almost 12 km.

Camoranesi: 6.5 - Fortunate goal as it took a crucial deflection. Wasted a number of chances for his side as many of his crosses were overhit.

Diego: 7.5 - Showed his true quality on the ball in the first half, dazzling the Maccabi defence with his skill and flair. Instrumental in the goal as he played a wonderful crossfield ball to Caceres.

Tiago: 5.5 - Played out of position on the left hand side and it showed - wasn't comfortable running at players and gave the ball away far too often.

Amauri: 5.5 - Not his night in front of goal. He had a couple of chances to give the Bianconeri the lead early on in the first half, and faded from the game as it wore on.

Substitutes:

De Ceglie: 5.5 - Working hard on the left hand side but very little end product.

Trezeguet: N/A - Brought on in the closing stages and had no time to get involved.

Anthony Wright, Goal.com

Player Ratings: Juventus 2-3 Napoli

After the Bianconeri threw away their two-goal advantage at home to the resurgent Partenopei, Goal.com's Anthony Wright was on hand to rate the players...


Oct 31, 2009 7:34:38 PM

JUVENTUS

Buffon: 6.5
- Made a brilliant save from Aronica's 19th minute shot, but in reality could do little to prevent the goals as his defence evaporated in front of him.

Grygera: 6 - A real game of two halves. Linked well with Camoranesi and delivered a superb cross for Juventus' first goal, but was horribly exposed by Datolo in the second half.

Cannavaro: 5 - Struggled to deal with the pace of Lavezzi and looked uncharacteristically uncertain on crosses.

Chiellini: 5.5 - He will be disappointed with the manner in which Juventus conceded the three goals, but he must take a share of the blame.

Grosso: 5.5 - Tried to get forward but was well marshalled by Maggio. When he did get into the final third his crossing was poor, and he lost out on numerous tackles over the course of the match.

Melo: 6 - He missed having Sissoko alongside him and did not dominate as much as against Sampdoria. Fairly comfortable in possession but didn't offer much protection to the back four in the second half.

Poulsen: 5.5 - Gave the ball away on occasions but had a solid first half. Has never really succeeded at Juventus and his less talented side came out in the second half, doing very little to stop Napoli's attacks.

Camoranesi: 6.5 - He was very bright early on but had to be substituted after 30 mins due to injury.

Diego: 5 - Saw glimpses of his talent but he was not as prominent as previous games. Someone needed to take command of the game when it was all square in the second half, and he was conspicuous by his absence.

Giovinco: 6.5 - He missed a glorious chance in the 1st minute, but made up for it by converting his 54th minute goal. Worked hard and is clearly growing in confidence.

Trezeguet: 6.5 - He scored with an excellent header to give Juventus the lead, but should have doubled the lead on the hour.

Substitutes:

Tiago: 4.5 - Initially he settled into the midfield well but it was his woeful clearance that set up Napoli's decisive third goal.

Amauri: 3 - Brought on with 15 minutes left to give Juventus the lead, but was totally anonymous until his boot caught De Sanctis' face to earn him a red card.

De Ceglie: N/A - Too little time to influence a game that was rapidly slipping away from Juventus.


NAPOLI

De Sanctis: 6 - Will be disappointed not to have kept Trezeguet's header out, but was brave as he dived both at the feet of the Frenchman after an hour as well as Amauri in injury time.

Campagnaro: 5.5 - He stood and watched as Trezeguet ran in front of him for Juventus' opening goal. Substituted on the hour for Datolo.

Cannavaro: 6 - Tried to keep Giovinco quiet, and he denied Tiago early on in the second half. Not his best evening, but organised the defence well as Juventus threw bodies forward in the closing minutes.

Contini: 4.5 - Very lucky not to be punished for an elbow on Camoranesi in the first half. When Juventus were at their free-flowing best, he was clearly out of his depth. Inexplicable header to gift Giovinco a goal.

Maggio: 7 - He played well on the right hand side, acting in a more defensive role in order to stop Grosso's runs.

Gargano: 7 - Hassled and harried the Bianconeri midfielders, winning the ball on a number of occasions and always looked to spread the ball forwards.

Cigarini: 6.5 - Slightly overwhelmed by Juventus midfield in the first half but improved after the break. Like Gargano, he was vital in sending the ball forwards with speed to aid Napoli's counter-attacks.

Aronica: 6 - Comfortable performance. Linked well with Lavezzi and brought a world-class save from Buffon in the first half.

Hamsik: 8.5 - He was in the right place at the right time for both of his goals, and converted the second with a perfect finish. His runs were always a danger to the hosts' defence, while his set pieces were inch-perfect.

Denis: 4.5 - Should have scored in the 7th minute and on a number of occasions thereafter. He worked hard up front, but his job is to score goals and when it came to the crucial moment, the Argentine slipped, missed the target or missed the ball completely.

Lavezzi: 6.5 - Very energetic, creating a number of chances for his team-mates. Playing off the main striker, his movement was a constant distraction to the hosts' defence.

Substitutes:

Datolo: 8 - Made an instant impact as he made a great run to set up the goal. Showed superb instinct to score the equaliser and gave Grygera no end of problems.

Quagliarella: 6 - Did nothing wrong in the 20 minutes he was on the pitch.

Pazienza: N/A - Came on for Lavezzi in the dying minutes.

Anthony Wright, Goal.com

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Player Ratings: Juventus 5-1 Sampdoria


The Serie A clash in Turin ended in a 5-1 win for Juventus. Goal.com rates the participants.

Oct 28, 2009 10:00:52 PM

JUVENTUS

Buffon - 6:
Aside from picking the ball out of the net once from Pazzini, Buffon did not have a single noteworthy save to make.

Grygera - 6.5:
Steady down the right hand side was the Czech Republic man. Had very little to do defensively.

Cannavaro - 6.5: Marked Cassano and Pazzini expertly, although he may be a little disappointed for losing concentration and allowing the latter to grab a consolation. Loses half a mark for this.

Chiellini - 8: Gobbled up both Cassano and Pazzini, and was just as impressive down the other end. Scored Juventus' second, and was close to heading home another effort.

Grosso - 7: Did not gallop forward as much as he usually does, perhaps under instructions from Ferrara. Still, almost scored with a stunning long range effort and assisted Trezeguet's goal.

Felipe Melo - 8.5: For a player who supposedly wasn't fully fit, this was some performance by the Brazilian powerhouse, who made the centre of the pitch his own. Melo's best performance since joining Juve.

Sissoko - 7.5: Is well on his way to acquiring full fitness. Alongside Felipe Melo, Sissoko made sure that the Samp midfield were up against two physical monsters.

Camoranesi - 8: Has perhaps been Juve's most consistent player this season, and he was again in top form tonight. Scored the third, made the fourth, and created numerous problems for Samp.

Diego - 7.5: The central cog of Juve's attacking three, and when he is flowing he is a class act. Assisted the opener, and was deeply involved in one of the others. Linked up nicely with Giovinco too.

Giovinco - 8.5: Unstoppable down the left, creating chance after chance for his team-mates all night, including a brilliant assist for Camoranesi's goal. Juve and Italy fans will now hope that he gets a regular run in the team.

Amauri - 9: Back to his best tonight. Scored two goals - the second in trademark fashion, created Chiellini's goal, and was a thorn in Samp's side all night.

Subs

Poulsen - 6.5:
Slotted in and kept the midfield ticking.

Trezeguet - 7:
Missed a sitter, but then did find the net with a powerful header.

De Ceglie - 6: A cameo performance.


SAMPDORIA

Castellazzi - 7:
May have conceded five, but prevented a cricket score with brilliant saves from Grosso, Chiellini and his own man Lucchini.

Stankevicius - 4:
Torn apart time and again by Giovinco down his side. Not really the most natural of right-backs, and it showed tonight.

Gastaldello - 4: Came back into the side this evening, but Samp were much better off without him. Was at fault for both of Juventus' first two goals.

Lucchini - 4: Just like his partner Gastaldello, this was a really sorry display from Lucchini. Had no answer to the opposition attack and was lucky not to score an own goal.

Zauri - 5: Struggled a little in the first half against Camoranesi and was sacrificed before half-time as Sampdoria switched to a more offensive system.

Mannini - 5: Has been one of the stars of Serie A this season, but tonight was not made for him.

Tissone - 4: Came in for late injury victim Palombo, and the Italy international was sorely missed in the middle-of-the-park. Tissone was totally overpowered.

Poli - 5.5: No doubting the talent of this youngster, but he couldn't showcase it today as he spent the entire game chasing the Juventus midfielders.

Ziegler - 5: Started in midfield before moving back into defence, and didn't do well in either role. In the second half Camoranesi scored one and made one from his side.

Cassano - 5.5: Started well, but the evening soon became a frustrating one for 'Talentino'. Seemed to give up after Juve's third goal.

Pazzini - 6.5: Anonymous for most of the match, but this didn't stop him grabbing a consolation with a clinically taken header.

Subs

Bellucci - 6:
Not involved much, but did provide the assist for Pazzini.

Padalino - 5.5:
A lot of running, but it was all in vain.

Cacciatore - 5: Lost Amauri for Juventus' fourth.

Carlo Garganese, Goal.com