Undefeated in 19 matches in the league. All teams want to see such statistics. Some coaches also feel relieved. The fact that they have not lost a match after half a season makes them dream of being ‘invincible’ or ending the season undefeated.
But Juventus coach Thiago Motta cannot be relieved even after going undefeated in the first 19 matches in Serie ‘A’ this season. Even though he has not lost a match, his team is not in a good position, currently they are in fifth place in the points table. The last time Juventus drew 1-1 with Torino in the Turin derby in Serie ‘A’ the night before last.
Juventus, which has won 7 of its 19 matches in Serie ‘A, has drawn 12. The team’s points are now 33. The Turin club is 11 points behind Napoli at the top, while Napoli has 44 points in 19 matches.
Even though Juventus has not lost, Napoli, which is leading by a large margin, has already lost 3 matches. However, it is not the loss, but the number of matches won that has made the difference between the two teams. 3 points for a win, 1 for a draw—let me tell you the reason. Napoli has won 14 matches in the first 19 matches, twice as many as Juventus.
The feat of winning the league title while undefeated is a big deal. In this era of highly competitive professional football, not losing a single match in an entire season is a rare feat. Last season, Bayer Leverkusen created no less excitement by becoming the champion of Germany’s Bundesliga while going undefeated.
However, Juventus, the ‘Old Lady of Turin’, is not able to dream as big as Leverkusen. Even the second and third-placed teams are behind by a larger margin. As a result, Juve has to keep their dream of the league title away and make it to the Champions League from the top four for now.
There are, of course, other examples of not being able to win the title despite being undefeated throughout the season. Such an incident was seen in the 1978-79 Serie A season. Perugia finished runners-up despite going undefeated in the league for 30 matches.
The club had 41 points from 30 matches with 11 wins and 19 draws. AC Milan, who won the title with 44 points that season, lost three matches. Apart from this, there are examples of teams in Portugal, Serbia, Turkey and other countries finishing the season undefeated without a title.
Juventus, however, had finished the league undefeated before. The team became the undefeated champions of the league in the 2011-12 season. Juventus won 23 of its 38 matches and drew 15.
