Juventus and Milan: A Perfect Start
Like defending champions Inter and runners-up Napoli, Juventus started the new Serie A season with a successful opening day, defeating returning side Frosinone 1-0 at home yesterday in the first round.
After narrowly missing out on a place in the UEFA Champions League in the final moments of last season, which they finished sixth behind Inter, Napoli, Roma, Como, and Milan respectively, Juventus are comforting themselves with hopes of making amends and aiming to reclaim the title that has eluded them since 2020.
True, Juventus’s victory over a team of Frosinone’s caliber, which has never managed to beat the “Old Lady” in any of their previous nine competitive meetings (eight defeats and one draw), is not a significant indicator, especially since it came via a solitary goal. However, it provides coach Luciano Spalletti’s side with the necessary boost at the start of the season.
Following in Juventus’s footsteps, Milan returned with a valuable away win against host Torino 2-1, marking the first official test for their new Portuguese manager Ruben Amorim, who replaced Massimiliano Allegri.
In France, new signing Ferran Torres rescued his team Paris Saint-Germain from an opening defeat and secured a draw against host Rennes 2-2, scoring a brace in the final twenty minutes of yesterday’s match in the first round of Ligue 1.
While the capital club was heading toward an opening loss after Rennes took a two-goal lead in the first half through Poland’s Sebastian Szymanski (9th minute) and Esteban Lebogang (38th minute), Torres, who arrived from Barcelona and scored the winning goal for Spain in last month’s World Cup final against Argentina to secure their second world title, shone by netting a brace after coming on early in the second half (71st and 82nd minutes).
For his part, Luis Enrique, PSG’s Spanish manager, warned his players against complacency during the new season following the disappointing draw. He emphasized that the team must prove its ability to compete in every match and training session, despite the achievements of last season.
Enrique stated that Paris Saint-Germain “has not won anything” in the new season, stressing the need to continue working hard and demonstrating readiness every day, in every match, and in every training session, as a sense of accomplishment could lead to relaxation and regression.
