Andrea Pirlo has offered his view about Juventus’ embarrassing 3-0 home loss to AC Milan on Sunday night and delivered an update on his future. The Italian’s future in Turin was hanging by a thread long before Milan conquered the Allianz Stadium.
Whether or not Fabio Paratici and co will decide to axe Pirlo is open for discussion, but some serious issues have to be addressed swiftly. Someone has to pay the price, and many expect the ex-playmaker to be thrown under the bus.
The Bianconeri supporters already hold the inexperienced manager responsible for their beloved side’s epic downfall. While some may forgive Pirlo for surrendering the title to bitter rivals Inter Milan, the prospect of missing out on Champions League qualification is deemed inexcusable.
For a club of Juventus’ stature and history in domestic football, the idea of finishing outside the top four was well beyond the realm of imaginable before the beginning of the season.
However, what looked impossible not long ago has now turned into a terrifying reality as the record-time Serie A champions do not hold the keys to their faith anymore.
With three league matches left to go, Juventus are a point adrift of fourth-placed Napoli and two below Atalanta and Milan. Fingers have been pointed towards Pirlo’s direction as someone needs to take the blame for a thoroughly underwhelming season.
And while the fans hope to see the former midfielder’s head roll, the 41-year-old refuses to consider the idea of stepping down.
When asked whether he intends to resign his position following Juventus’ humiliation on home territory, Pirlo replied: “No, I took this job with much enthusiasm. My job continues, I remain at the club’s disposal.
“I think I can do better than this. This is a difficult moment, but we need to look forward. Sure, a lot of things didn’t go the way I expected.
“I worked on some principles, but then I had to adapt myself. We will need to get out of this situation.“
The fact that Milan ran his team down left Pirlo flabbergasted as he insists everything that happened on Sunday evening contradicts Juve’s spirit in the build-up to the game.
“During the week, I saw the team in good shape. We trained with concentration and dedication. I saw a side alive and determined to make a great game.
“It was not the case unfortunately and it’s difficult to explain it now. If you lose such an important game by 3-0, then there’s many components that didn’t go well.
“It means a lot of things didn’t work.”