07/26/2020 - 18:45
- Clarín.com
- sports
May 6, 2012. That day it all started. A goal by Montenegrin Mirko Vucinic and another against Michele Canini gave Juventus a 2-0 victory against Cagliari at the Nereo Rocco stadium in Trieste, where the Sardinians were playing at home. That triumph and Milan's 4 to 2 defeat against Inter at Giuseppe Meazza (Diego Milito scored three goals) sentenced the Serie A title for the Turin team. The first of a chain of consecrations that this Sunday added its ninth link without anyone having been able to cut it since then.
That Scudetto of the 2011/12 season, which he obtained without losing a single match, was also Juve's first after Calciopoli , the match-fixing scandal that had earned him the stripping of two trophies (those of the 2004 / 05 and 2005/06) and the drop to Serie B . Since his swift return to the top flight in 2007, he had seen Inter devote three times to Milan before starting his triumphant series.
Captain Alessandro Del Piero, at the center of the celebration of the Serie A title that Juventus obtained in 2012. (Photo: Massimo Pinca / AP)
Of that 2012 champion team, in which Alessandro Del Piero played his last games after 19 seasons with the Bianconeras jersey , there are still three survivors over time: Giorgio Chiellini, Leonardo Bonucci and the stainless Gianluigi Buffon. The first, with an uninterrupted presence. His teammates, with brief temporary outings: the defender to Milan (in the 2017/18 season) and the guard to Paris Saint-Germain (in 2018/19).
The winning coach of that first title and the following two was Antonio Conte, just today Inter coach, one of the main rivals of Vecchia Signora in the current campaign. His successor, Massimiliano Allegri, was responsible for the five subsequent consecrations. The title button this Thursday was the first by Maurizio Sarri, whose continuity is not assured.
Giorgio Chiellini is the only footballer to have participated in the nine tournaments in which Juventus has established himself as champion since 2012. (Photo: SIMONE ARVEDA / EFE / EPA)
The nine consecutive championships of the Turin cast represent the best streak in one of the top five leagues in Europe. The team that is closest to achieving it is Bayern Munich, which in June was consecrated for the eighth time in a row in the Bundesliga. In France, Lyon achieved seven titles between 2001 and 2008. Real Madrid appears much further, which achieved five in Spain (1961-1965 and 1986-1990). In England, Liverpool (1982-1984) and Manchester United (1999-2001 and 2007-2009) reached three.
In any case, the Vecchia Signora is still far from the 14 titles in a row achieved by the unknown Lincoln of Gibraltar (2003.2016) and Skonto of Latvia (1991–2004), who hold the record in the Old Continent. The best brand on the planet was the Vanuatu Tafea, which linked 15 championships in a row from 1994 to 2008.
Juventus is not currently the only European club to boast such a long streak: in these months the Scottish Celtic and the Bulgarian Ludogorets also won their ninth consecutive title . The New Saints had eight, but Connah's Quay Nomads cut his streak in the Welsh league, which ended six dates ahead of schedule due to the coronavirus pandemic.
FK