beIN SPORTS

By Adam Digby (@Adz77)

This should not be happening. Not now, not like this.

On Wednesday evening, Juventus ground out a fortunate 0-0 draw against AS Monaco, securing their passage to the last four of the Champions League for the first time in twelve years. That achievement is the fruit of four seasons of difficult toil, the management of the Turin giants completely transforming the club over that period after one of the most disappointing periods in their entire history.

Two consecutive seventh place finishes under Ciro Ferrara and Gigi Delneri – with a short Alberto Zaccheroni spell in between – were simply unacceptable, and so President Andrea Agnelli and Director General Beppe Marotta turned to the club’s past in order to shape their future. The appointment of Antonio Conte was just the injection of passion and grit that the team needed, seeing them go an entire campaign undefeated under the guidance of their former midfielder.

That secured their first league title in six years, the Old Lady finally returning to the top of the standings after her 2006 relegation as part of the Calciopoli scandal which rocked football on the peninsula to its core. As we know, Conte followed up with two more Scudetti – setting a new record of 102 points in a single season along the way – but would resign this past summer. He did so believing that the Bianconeri could not compete with the continent’s elite clubs, famously remarking that “you cannot eat at a €100 restaurant with just €10 in your pocket.”

There is much truth to be found in his words, and it is impossible to deny that the biggest clubs have continually dominated in the Champions League. Yet, for all his brilliance in dominating Serie A, Conte himself had struggled to adapt to life in Europe, failing to get out of the Group Stage last season and his only knockout round success came a year earlier over Scottish title-winners Celtic.

Still, his departure left the future uncertain for La Madama, with many believing they would be unable to hold off the challenge presented by Rudi Garcia and a resurgent AS Roma without their own emotional leader. The appointment of Max Allegri only saw those feeling intensify as, despite delivering the 2010-11 league title to San Siro, he was seen as the man who had looked on helplessly as that side disintegrated in subsequent campaigns.

Yet Agnelli and Marotta trusted the Livorno native, believing he was the right coach to continue their project, with their faith completely rewarded. While Allegri could never have rebuilt the club from the dire situation Conte inherited, he has proven capable of achieving what his predecessor could not and lifted them to even greater heights. Completely underestimated from the moment he arrived, the coach has even surpassed his own pre-season declaration that it was “his duty” to guide them to the last eight of the Champions League.

Not only has Allegri now gone a step further, he has also carved out a fifteen point advantage at the top of Serie A and secured a place in next month’s Coppa Italia final. Juventus have only achieved a league and cup double twice before, with the last instance coming in 1995 when another first-year coach was sitting on the bench.

Marcello Lippi also steered the club to a European final in that maiden campaign, eventually losing to Parma in the UEFA Cup showpiece, and the World Cup winner has already delivered the most ringing endorsement of the job’s current incumbent. “I see myself in Allegri,” Lippi remarked to La Gazzetta dello Sport recently. “He came to Juve more or less at the same age I did, has the same solidity I do and the same drive to make the team more modern.”

He has certainly done accomplished that, freeing the club’s attacking players to improvise much more while never fully abandoning the defensive prowess that was the side’s hallmark under Conte. As he showed against AS Monaco, Allegri is unafraid of returning to the three-man backline when needing to secure a result, but a formation he describes as “4-3-and then we’ll see” is at the heart of the improvements.

Carlos Tevez has perhaps been the greatest beneficiary, his tally of 26 goals this season his highest since his first year with Manchester City when he notched just three more. Adding eight assists, he has been simply sensational alongside impressive new signings Roberto Pereyra and Alvaro Morata in that new-look attack. The likes of Paul Pogba and Claudio Marchisio have provided excellent support at both ends of the pitch, while the recent resurgence of Arturo Vidal has been hugely significant.

Following his hasty return from knee surgery in order to represent Chile at the World Cup, the 27 year old had laboured in the first half of the campaign, but now appears to be back at his tenacious best without the ball and incisive in possession. Yet the players themselves seem quick to place credit with Allegri, regularly praising him in public with perhaps Giorgio Chiellini – a veteran of the side after more than a decade in Turin – the most vocal in his support.

“The change of Coach gave Juventus something more, because in the first two months of the season we wanted to prove that we were still the best,” the defender remarked to Sport Mediaset last month. “We are grateful to Conte and recognise everything he did here, but we also want to prove to everyone and above all to ourselves that we are a great team.”

They have certainly done that in spectacular fashion, Gigi Buffon expressing his delight at ending Juve’s long absence from the semi finals. "I didn't think it would take twelve years to reach the semi-final again!" the jubilant club captain – and last remaining member of that 2003 side – commented after the final whistle, and he certainly was not alone in that belief.

As they watched themselves paired with Real Madrid on Friday in the Champions League draw, Juventus still might've begun to believe this is their year. The gulf between them and the Spanish outfit, as well as the other two remaining teams, is stark in almost every measurable area, but the Bianconeri can look to Chelsea’s win under Roberto Di Matteo as an example of what can be achieved by intelligent players and smart coaching.

Overlooked in a similar manner, Max Allegri has proven to be the right man in the right place at the right time for Italian football’s grand Old Lady, allowing fans to dream of what the next month might bring.

Why not now, why not like this?