Not many would have tipped Antonio Conte's new look Juventus to achieve the feats they have at the beginning of the season. After several years in the doldrums, the Juve hierarchy called on one of their prodigal sons to recapture the kind of glory days he enjoyed as a player for the Bianconeri.
Conte's stamp was immediately put on the side with the acquisition of a fellow midfield general in Andrea Pirlo. Seen by many as a desperate ploy to squeeze the last remnants of life out of a waning talent, Conte's purchase proved to be a master-stroke as Pirlo rolled back the years to inspire Juve to the Scudetto once again.They were a team without superstar players like rivals, Milan. They were a workmanlike outfit, a team of grafters working around Pirlo's graceful elegance.
Conte's ability and willingness to adapt, a facet that was never present under Luigi Delneri, was key to Juve's success. From 4-2-4 to 4-1-4-1 to 4-3-3, Conte was always willing to change his system to suit the circumstances. This was no more so illustrated by his decision to go like-for-like with a 3-5-2 formation against Udinese and Napoli, a system which he would use permanently during the run-in, proving decisive in turning the side's fortunes around and securing the title.
It had not been all plain sailing for the Old Lady. A spate of draws and blanks between February and March threatened to cost them their dream. However, Conte's tactical change liberated the midfield trio of Claudio Marchisio, Arturo Vidal and Pirlo. Without a prolific striker, the goals were shared around the squad and the defence was the best in the league with Gigi Buffon showing why he's still one of the world's best. Stephan Lichtsteiner had a terrific debut season marauding as a right wing-back. Mirko Vucinic provided some much needed guile in the final third during the run-in. Meanwhile Alex Del Piero showed in his final season that he was still capable of some magic moments with crucial cameos sprinkled in.
A 28th official Scudetto with a magnificent undefeated record was Juve's reward for a terrific collective effort.
