Italian football columnist Fahraaz Patel believes there are certainly two things Antonio Conte can reflect upon at the end of the season - the impacts of Kwadwo Asamoah and Paul Pogba.
Juventus have clinched their 29th Italian championship, however their fans are insisting it’s 31st after they were stripped of two in the calciopoli match-fixing scandal in 2005 and 2006 – and surely it was a deserved title.
They had maintained their position on the summit throughout the entire season and did so largely without Conte after he was suspended until February – because of his involvement in the match-fixing scandal with Siena two years ago.
But even without the coach, Juve’s consistency and great leadership from Gianluigi Buffon, Andrea Pirlo and Giorgio Chiellini, was enough to see the team play to their potential and make sure that even after defeats by Inter Milan and AC Milan, they stayed focussed without a meltdown.
Lets’s be honest, the Bianconeri faced much more tougher competition in Serie A this year even if they were the most superior team in Italy.
Conte’s activity in the transfer market yielded both positive and negative results.
Nicolas Anelka and Nicklas Bendtner – on-loan fron Arsenal – failed to add value to a mediocre strike-force and the hype about Mauricio Isla being effective as wing-back never came to fruition due to his lack of game time.
Despite Sebastian Giovinco’s ability, skill and pace, his lack of physical prowess got found out but it’s still an area he can work on.
But there were positives taken from Conte’s signings, and those two were Paul Pogba and Kwadwo Asamoah.
Pogba never really got the chance to fulfil his potential at Manchester United due to the lack of game time at Old Trafford, but at Juve, Conte believed that the Frenchman would be the heir to Pirlo’s throne as the deep-lying playmaker would work and when he was used there, Pogba never failed to disappoint in Turin.
Asamoah – a central-midfielder who was meant to add depth to the squad – evolved into a wing-back for Conte and not only did this enhance Asamoah’s attacking ability, but he also improved defensively.
Conte’s stroke of genius found a way to have both Pogba and Asamoah in the starting line-up, and they have probably been the unsung heroes for the Bianconeri.