Barcelona and Juventus played out an entertaining 2-2 draw in their club friendly at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas, USA.
Ousmane Dembele and Moise Kean stole the show as they both bagged braces for their respective clubs. Dembele continued his tremendous pre-season form as he twice gave Barca the lead, but Kean – who got the start at centre-forward over Dusan Vlahovic – twice equalised for the Old Lady.
Meanwhile, Frenkie de Jong, who has curiously been used at centre-back during pre-season, was partly responsible for Kean’s second goal as his strange saga continues.
Read on as SBOTOP shares four key takeaways from the Barcelona-Juventus friendly shootout.
Dembele strengthens his claim for starting spot
Ousmane Dembele finally settled his contract dispute this summer as he agreed to a new deal. However, he now faces some stiff competition for a starting spot after Barca signed Raphinha, who has looked impressive in pre-season.
The Brazilian has scored twice in his two starts, including the winner in Barca’s El Clasico win over Real Madrid. And he came close to scoring a third goal as he hit the crossbar from a free-kick after coming on as a substitute.
But Dembele doesn’t seem ready to give up his starting place on the right wing without a fight, as he produced a fantastic performance against Juve. The French winger scored two outstanding individual goals that were the pick of the club friendly 2022 highlights, and has now scored four goals in four pre-season matches.
With the additions of Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski to a front line that already included Dembele, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Ferran Torres, Ansu Fati, and Memphis Depay, there figures to be some stiff competition for places in attack at Barca this season.
But with Dembele’s fabulous pre-season form, Xavi could have a real selection headache deciding between Dembele and Raphinha on the right.
Kean could be key for Juventus this season
On the other side, Juventus’ Moise Kean also made his case to Massimiliano Allegri for more playing time with his fine brace.
Juve’s club friendly 2022 odds were not looking all that strong when Kean again got the start at centre-forward over Dusan Vlahovic, who has yet to make an appearance in pre-season. But the 22-year-old Italian delivered in front of goal for the Old Lady.
Juve have already made some significant changes to their attack this summer. Paulo Dybala, Alvaro Morata, and Federico Bernardeschi have left the club while Angel Di Maria and Paul Pogba – who suffered an injury scare last time out – have come in. The Old Lady have also been linked with a loan deal for Chelsea striker Timo Werner in a bid to solidify their attack.
Kean is looking to bounce back after an underwhelming 2021-22 season upon returning to Juve on loan from Everton. He saw himself behind Morata and Dybala – and Vlahovic once he arrived in January – in the forward pecking order as he made just 12 starts, scoring five goals.
Kean is unlikely to unseat Vlahovic as Juve’s first-choice centre-forward, but he could still play a crucial part in their upcoming campaign as a primary backup off the bench, especially if Juve are unable to bring back Morata or get another top striker.
Xavi’s de Jong defender experiment doesn’t go well
Frenkie de Jong remains a Barcelona player amid his reluctance to join Manchester United. However, the Dutchman has yet to make a start in pre-season and has been surprisingly used as a defender by Barca manager Xavi.
That little experiment did not go well against Juve, though, as de Jong’s unconvincing attempted clearance at the edge of his own penalty box led to Juventus’ second equaliser.
de Jong has experience playing at centre-back from his time at Ajax, and he has also been moved there at times at Barcelona. But he has made it clear that he prefers to play in midfield.
After signing Andreas Christensen, Barcelona appear to be closing in on a deal for Sevilla centre-back Jules Kounde to help strengthen the heart of their defence, so it’s unlikely that they need de Jong to fill in at centre-back during the season.
But it could be a bit concerning for de Jong that he doesn’t seem to be that high in the Barcelona midfield pecking order and is behind the likes of Sergio Busquets, Pedri, Gavi, Nico Gonzalez, and newcomer Franck Kessie.
Could this be a not-so-subtle hint from the club that he might need to move to Manchester to be a regular starter in midfield? We shall see.
Juve defence still quite deficient
Speaking of defence, Juventus’ backline has been shaken up this summer by the departures of captain Giorgio Chiellini as well as Matthijs de Ligt. Gleison Bremer has already come in to replace de Ligt alongside Leonardo Bonucci. But Barca and Dembele showed just how shaky the Old Lady’s defence still is.
Dembele ripped Juventus’ left-sided duo of Juan Cuadrado and Alex Sandro to shreds with his pace and dribbling ability, which is a troubling sign for Allegri.
The Old Lady have been renowned over the years for their defensive solidity, and their weakness at the back could keep them from being serious Serie A title contenders. But they still have time to address those defensive shortcomings in the summer transfer window.
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