Juventus‘ poor start to the new season continued on Saturday night, after Massimiliano Allegri’s men suffered a shock 1-0 defeat to newly-promoted Empoli in Turin.

The Bianconeri threatened from the off, and Federico Chiesa went close on two occasions, first firing straight at the goalkeeper, and then forcing Guglielmo Vicario into a super stop after a wonderful mazy run.

But Empoli took a shock lead on 21 minutes, when Leonardo Mancuso brought the ball down in the box to fire beyond Wojciech Szczesny and silence the home crowd. Juve were rocked by this blow, and had to ride a few scares throughout the first half against a lively Azzurri outfit.

The Italian giants then delivered an atrocious second half display, devoid of ideas or creativity, relying heavily on the individual spark of Paulo Dybala and Dejan Kulusesvki, but to no avail. Juve were constantly caught out on the counter attack, and struggled to force Vicario into any serious action.

The referee brought the game to its end, sparking jeers and whistles from the frustrated home crowd, and leaving the Old Lady with only one point from their opening two fixtures.

Let’s check out the player ratings.

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Wojciech Szczesny (GK) – 5/10 – Rooted to his line as Mancuso collected the loose ball to fire home the opener. Spared Chiesa’s blushes by tipping his back-pass header over the bar. Struck fear through his defence all night.

Juan Cuadrado (RB) – 6/10 – Wasted some great crossing opportunities with hopelessly over or under-hit deliveries. Always looked to penetrate though, and performed better than most of his teammates.

Leonardo Bonucci (CB) – 5/10 – Struggled with the physicality of Patrick Cutrone, who wasn’t afraid to bully the Italian centre-back. Poor, and a shadow of his Euro 2020 self.

Matthijs de Ligt (CB) – 6/10 – Beaten by the deflection which fed the ball into Mancuso. The better of the two centre-backs, but that’s not saying much.

Alex Sandro (LB) – 6/10 – Got caught under the flight of the ball on a couple of occasions, and once again was lacking in defensive awareness. Caused a few problems going forward, but nothing to write home about.

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Rodrigo Bentancur (CM) – 6/10 – A one-man band in this midfield at times. Also guilty of getting pickpocketed and being too slow on the ball, but support in the centre of the pitch was non-existent.

Danilo (CM) – 5/10 – Doesn’t offer enough to a midfield already lacking in drive and direction. Far too pedestrian and sideways. Just not what Juve need in that area of the pitch.

Adrien Rabiot (CM) – 5/10 – Ball-watching for Empoli’s shock early goal. No defensive instinct inside his own box. Substituted after yet another horrible display. How long can this go on for?

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Weston McKennie (RW) – 5/10 – Anonymous in the first half, switching left and central to try and make an impact on the game. Substituted at half-time. Forgettable.

Paulo Dybala (ST) – 6/10 – Desperate to create chances, but the odd pass ran loose. Took control and tried to spark Juve into life, but his teammates were non-responsive.

Federico Chiesa (LW) – 7/10 – Tested Vicario three times in the opening 25 minutes, forcing three super saves. A force of nature when driving with the ball at his feet. Doesn’t deserve to be surrounded by such averageness.

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Alvaro Morata (ST) – 5/10

Federico Bernardeschi (LW) – 5/10

Manuel Locatelli (CM) – 6/10

Dejan Kulusevski (RW) – 6/10

Mattia De Sciglio (RB) – 6/10

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