From a distance, you might think that everything smiles on Adrien Rabiot with Juventus.
He is the sixth most used player of a team undefeated for 15 matches in Serie A, victorious in its semi-final first leg in the Italian Cup and still in contention in the Champions League.
Take a closer look and you will understand why, in Turin, they do not think well of the Bianconeri, and in particular of their French international environment.
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"I have to score, I haven't scored yet this season, but also make assists. I know I have to do more. »
Adrien Rabiot last December
The return to the bench of Massimiliano Allegri last summer had the effect of a wet firecracker.
At the beginning of November, Juventus ranked in the second half of the Serie A table. In addition to results at half mast, the game offered embraced the cliché of the Italian catenaccio.
"
When you can't win, you have to try not to lose
," Allegri implored after a defeat in added time against Sassuolo on October 27 (1-2).
In this slump, you have to be called Paulo Dybala to stand out this season.
If he cannot be held responsible for all the evils of the Old Lady, Rabiot found himself in the crosshairs of observers.
SEE ALSO –
Rabiot's decisive pass for Moise Kean at Empoli on February 26 (2-3)
"
New tile at Juve after the injuries of McKennie and Kaio Jorge: Rabiot is in great shape...
" This is how comedian and football lover Gene Gnocchi quipped in the weekly magazine
Sportweek
.
Symbol of the perception of the former Parisian by public opinion.
With 34 matches including 28 starts, Rabiot has the confidence of Allegri.
But his box-to-box profile does not bring any dynamism to an already cautious team, which often favors the back pass, flat foot safety, to risk-taking forward.
Whistled in December, Allegri defends him
His limited contribution, Rabiot, oh so discreet in the media, already noted it in December at a press conference: “
I have to score, I have not yet scored this season, but also make decisive passes.
It would be good for me and for the team.
I know I have to do more.
“Since these words, Rabiot has played 19 matches for … zero goals, and only one assist.
Not enough to reverse the trend in the eyes of Bianconeri supporters, who did not fail to whistle him in the fall.
“
I am a professional, I have been doing this job for ten years, I know football,
replied Rabiot.
Playing well is the only way to change things.
»
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If the tricolor international encourages himself to score, this is not what Allegri puts his finger on.
“
He can disappoint when you expect him to score ten goals, because he gives the feeling of being able to do so, but it is not in his characteristics,
judged the Tuscan coach last Saturday.
He is having a good season, he sacrifices himself, runs a lot, recovers balls, even if he should be more free to project himself forward.
But isn't it Allegri who, by his measured ambition, limits Rabiot's possibilities of existing offensively?
Or is the player unable to let go despite the green light from his coach?
Chicken and egg dilemma.
The numbers to his disadvantage
As for the laurels woven by Allegri, can the statistics confirm them?
According to the specialized site
Football-Reference
, Adrien Rabiot is the 8th player who has succeeded in the most tackles in Serie A. Balloons, he scratches.
But the number of kilometers traveled, he is only the 86th player in the Italian championship with 9.9 kilometers per game.
According to the Football Observatory, the average distance covered by a midfielder is 10.6 kilometers per match.
Finally, on the offensive aspect, it's a tumble: Rabiot is only the 95th player in Serie A in the number of ball progressions (at least 5 meters), and the 188th outfield player in the number of meters traveled by forward passes.
For comparison, the French midfielder from Sassuolo Maxime Lopez is 6th in this ranking.
Juve can still win it all
Arrived free in 2019 after months of difficulties at PSG, Rabiot has still not convinced in Turin, where his contract runs until June 2023. Soon to be 27 years old (he will be on April 3), the native of Saint- Maurice is struggling to turn a corner.
He no longer even offers flashes of genius, like his ride concluded with panache against AC Milan, in July 2020.
SEE ALSO –
Rabiot's incredible goal at AC Milan in July 2020 (4-2)
The click is long overdue.
That shouldn't prevent him from starting again against Villarreal this Wednesday (9 p.m.), in the knockout stages of the Champions League, as in the first leg (1-1).
Holder in a team which, despite the criticism, can still believe in a historic triple at the end of the season.
In Serie A, Juve, which seemed doomed three months ago, returned to 6 points behind the leader, AC Milan.
Like the Old Lady, Rabiot is not making much progress.
He crawls.
But he never stops.