Juventus blast Al Ain in Club World Cup opener

Over the last few years, one of the most infuriating things about Juventus has been their inability to control games against clearly inferior opposition. Losing points against Serie A’s minnows has caused the collective blood pressure of the club’s fan base to spike far too much for our liking.

So, as Juventus entered the Club World Cup, knowing that a date with Manchester City awaited them in Matchday 3, they knew that taking care of business in their first two games, against opposition of far less quality, would be important if they were to advance. Falling into the usual trap against inferior competition could put them in quite the bind.

Their opening match came Wednesday night against Al Ain, the most successful team in the United Arab Emirates. But being the UAE’s version of Juventus did not mean they were anywhere close to the Bianconeri’s level.

And for once, Juve made that incredibly clear. Up 3-0 after half an hour and 4-0 when the teams went in for halftime, Juve had no issues putting the Emirati club to the sword, ultimately winning 5-0 to take first place in Group G on goal differential.

Fresh off a contract extension confirming his job for the 2025-26 season, Igor Tudor brought 26 players to the tournament, although some were still not in game shape. Manuel Locatelli was deemed fit only for the bench after injuring his ankle on international duty, and Bremer was not risked — nor will he be — as he continues his recovery from his torn ACL in early October. Tudor sent his charges out in his usual 3-4-2-1, with Michele Di Gregorio at its base. Pierre Kalulu, Nicolò Savona, and Lloyd Kelly formed the back line. Alberto Costa and Andrea Cambiaso played as wing-backs, while Khéphren Thuram and Weston McKenniee took up position in midfield. Kenan Yildiz and Francisco Conceição backed up Randal Kolo Muani up front.

Al-Ain coach Vladimir Ivic countered with a 5-3-2. Anchoring the formation was the one name familiar to most European listeners, Rui Patricio, who was making his competitive debut for the Emerati side. Abdoul Traoré, Rami Rabia, Marcel Ratnick, Kouame Kouadio, and Facundo Zabala stretched across the back line. Matías Palacios, Alejandro Romero, and Park Yong-woo manned the midfield, while Soufiane Rahimi paired with Kodjo Laba up top.

The gulf in quality between the two teams was readily apparent from fairly early on. Al Ain tried to apply pressure, but soon it was them who were being pinned back. In the 11th minute a nifty passing move above the right corner of the penalty area teed up Costa for a beautiful first-time cross to the back post, which Kolo Muani leaped high into the air to dispatch into the top corner.

Juve’s issues playing from ahead — especially against lesser competition — have been well documented these past two years, but on this muggy night in Washington D.C. the Bianconeri hit on the kind of relentless streak that has evaded them against this kind of team.

Al Ain didn’t muster much of a response, and Juve continued to press their advantage. Ten minutes after taking the lead they doubled it. The attack again came from the right, with Costa finding Yildiz wide open in the right channel. His shot was blocked, but Costa stole the ball back and laid it back to Conceição, who drifted into the middle and took advantage of a deflection that sent the ball over Patricio’s head and into the net. A long VAR check followed to see if Costa handled the ball before passing it to Conceição, and while it did inadvertently deflect off his arm, the next touch came off a defender, and referee Tori Penso confirmed the goal.

Yildiz didn’t waste time to press the advantage further. He took a short pass from Thuram, turned, and, with Park draped across his shoulder, fired a 25-yard dart with his right foot that kissed the inside of the post as it nestled into the net.

It was 3-0 after just over 30 minutes of play, and even so Juve still kept pushing. Yildiz hit the side netting from an angle, and Kelly of all people very nearly glanced a header into the net on a corner. The VAR review added an extra five minutes to the first half, and in the fourth added minute Al-Ain’s defending broke down completely, leaving Thuram unchallenged in acres of space to loft a ball in behind for Kolo Muani, who had slipped through a completely inattentive back line. He took the ball down in the right channel and hit a smart finish with the outside of his boot that bent the ball around Patricio and into the net.

It was the first time Juve had scored four goals in the first half since February of 2018, when Juve crushed Sassuolo 7-0.

As the teams came out of the locker room, everything seemed to be in hand. Just seconds into the second half, though, Al-Ain finally looked like they’d come up with a response, getting the ball into the net off Costa’s back, but the Kouadio was fractionally offside when he headed it back across, bailing Juve out of jail. Only minutes later, Di Gregorio was forced to make his first and only big save of the night, tipping Laba’s strike from the top of the box over the bar.

But that early flurry was the last Al Ain really managed to show much life. Just before the hour Kalulu dropped a ball in for Conceição, who cut inside and hit a worm-burner across goal that put the finishing touch on the evening. The final 30 minutes of the match were simply a matter of seeing things out and not getting hurt — all of which Juve did in relatively short order, ending an excellent opening game.

LE PAGELLE

MICHELE DI GREGORIO – 7. Made one big save at the beginning of the second half that kept Al Ain from getting any ideas in their heads, and was efficient throughout.

PIERRE KALULU – 6. Got torched for speed on Laba’s shot early in the second half, but was otherwise excellent, blocking a shot, making two tackles, and assisting on the final goal.

NICOLÒ SAVONA – 7. Steady, excellent, accurate. Completed 97.9 percent of his passes. There were times you hardly thought about his presence on the field—in the good way.

LLOYD KELLY – 6. Steady in his defending and almost scored in the first half. Question becomes how will he fare against better competition.

ALBERTO COSTA – 8. It looks like Cristiano Giuntoli did find a gem at the end of his time in charge. Costa has looked better and better with every passing match, and his cross on his first assist was a thing of beauty. His two assists were two of four key passes he made, and he notched three tackles and three interceptions as well.

WESTON McKENNIE – 6. Completed 90 percent of his passes but had to work carefully after picking up an early yellow. Worked well with Thuram but doesn’t have the passing range of Loctelli.

KHÉPHREN THURAM – 7. Assisted twice, including an excellent ball to pick out Kolo Muani in first-half stoppage time. Taken off at halftime, possibly to keep him off his feet in the oppressive conditions.

ANDREA CAMBIASO – 5.5. Most of the attacks in the first half came from the right, so he didn’t have a ton to do. Taken off at the break, probably because of the yellow card he was shown 15 minutes in.

FRANCISCO CONCEIÇÃO – 8. Couldn’t be contained by Al Ain’s defense. His goals were pretty, and he added two more key passes besides along with five dribbles.

KENAN YILDIZ – 8. Scored one of the goals of the first round of the tournament, showing off how strong he is even at only 20. Had three key passes to go with it and was a constant threat behind Kolo Muani.

Photo by Stuart Franklin – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images

RANDAL KOLO MUANI – 8. Both of his goals were excellent. The first was a fantastic balance of jumping skills and heading, and the second was a fantastic flick with the outside of his right foot to get it around the goalkeeper. Lively and found the creases in the defense.

SUBS

TIMOTHY WEAH – 6.5. Defended well on the left side and notched three key passes in the second half.

DOUGLAS LUIZ – 6. Nice to see him for 45 minutes. Completed 96.1 percent of his passes, made three tackles, and came desperately close to his first Juventus goal twice late in the game, shaving the paint off the post with one shot and banging it flush on the other with the second.

TEUN KOOPMEINERS – 5.5. Didn’t produce a whole lot, but it was good to see him out there for the first time in a while. Hopefully Tudor’s system can get him back on his feet.

FEDERICO GATTI – 6. Another great guy to see on the field for some extended minutes. In 20 minutes he put together two tackles, a clearance … and a yellow. Typical from Freddy Cats.

DUSAN VLAHOVIC – 5. Credited with a dribble but had his touch let him down a few times and didn’t threaten. Hopefully he finds a vein of form to showcase him for sale.

MANAGER ANALYSIS

There will be a lot of people tamping down this result as a result of the gulf in quality between Juve and Al Ain. All due respect to the Emerati side, but it’s worth wondering if they could beat most of the relegation strugglers in Serie A.

Photo by Image Photo Agency/Getty Images

But that is frankly the exact thing that makes this win so encouraging. I’ve pushed the thread of Juve’s struggles against inferior opposition to the point of ad nauseam, but it truly is one of the major issues of this team over the past several years. Neither Massimilano Allegri nor Thiago Motta could puzzle out how to change that, but there have been some encouraging signs from Igor Tudor that that may be changing.

Wednesday was the biggest evidence of all there. Juventus pushed Al Ain from the moment the game started, and didn’t let up even at 3-0 or 4-0. That kind of relentlessness against low-level opposition has been missing for years, and if Tudor can restore it it will go a long way toward pushing Juve back up the table.

Now we’ll see if they do the same against Wydad this weekend.

LOOKING AHEAD

Juve face Wydad Casablanca on Sunday in Philadelphia, then square off against Manchester City in Orlando the following Thursday to close the group stage.