Juventus stand still in bid to revive former glories

Massimiliano Allegri seemed like the perfect man to restore faltering Juventus to former glories when he returned for a second spell as coach, but 12 months on from his homecoming there are few signs of a revival.

Juve's defeat by Inter Milan in the Coppa Italia final means Serie A's most successful side, who are fourth in standings and out of title contention, will finish a season trophyless for the first time since 2010-11.

Allegri, who won five Serie A crowns in a row during his first spell in Turin between 2014 and 2019, struggled in Europe too, with Juve having been knocked out of the Champions League at the last-16 stage for the third season in a row.

This was not how it was supposed to happen. Juventus went for a club icon in Andrea Pirlo as their coach for the 2020-21 season as they chased a 10th successive Scudetto, and a more adventurous style of football.

Pirlo was fired after a meek title defence in which Juve finished fourth, a position deemed intolerable for a club of their stature.

Two defeats in finals to Inter - the Suppercoppa and Coppa Italia - and another fourth-placed finish in Serie A on the cards given Juve trail Napoli in third by four points with two games remaining, mean the jury is still out on Allegri mark two.

Allegri has insisted he has no regrets about returning, but having received much criticism in the Italian media and from former players over his negative tactics, the cracks are showing.

As Inter overwhelmed Juve in extra time on Wednesday thanks to Croatian forward Ivan Perisic's double, Allegri was sent to the stands by the referee for his overzealous protestations.

It was not the first time this season either. On this occasion, Allegri had to be held back by his own staff as he clashed