The early concerns that accompanied Juventus’ start to the campaign were understandable following the departure of Antonio Conte

Under the former boss, the Bianconeri had evolved into the most dominant side in Serie A, reflected emphatically by a trio of consecutive Scudetto wins under the tutelage of the Italian. Massimiliano Allegri was tasked with filling those significant and successful shoes, and on the domestic front, the transition has been seamless.

Allegri will be tasked with building on the Conte regime though, and bettering the one facet of his reign in which the former manager failed, in European competition. Despite putting together a magnificent squad bristling with quality and experience, the Bianconeri have been unable to get past the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League since they emerged as Serie A’s premier outfit.

After re-establishing themselves as the most formidable force in Italian football once again, there’s a sense that now’s the time for this team, and for players like Andrea Pirlo, Paul Pogba and Carlos Tevez to finally make a mark on European football’s premier competition in the black and white. For Juve veterans like Gianluigi Buffon and Giorgio Chiellini too, the clock is ticking on their chances to lift the iconic trophy.

In truth, Juventus’ underperformance in European competition in not a recent phenomena. While the club have won 30 titles—12 more than both Milanese clubs, who have 18 each—they’ve only ever won two European Cups, five less than Milan and one less than Internazionale. For a club of their stature, that’s simply not enough.

It’s not as if they haven’t had chances, either. Juventus have played in seven European Cup finals in their history, but have only been able to win just two, the most recent loss coming in 2003 when a Pavel Nedved-less Bianconeri side struggled for 120 minutes against Milan and eventually lost on penalties. 

Since that final the club have gone through well-documented ups and downs, but at this juncture they have a team that should be capable of going head-to-head with European football’s elite. But for one reason or another, it’s not materialised.

Admittedly, in 2012/13—where they appeared in the Champions after winning the 2012 Scudetto and going through the entire campaign undefeated under Conte—they ran into an imperious Bayern Munich side, but in the season after, a loss to Galatasaray in the final game of the group stage relegated the Italian champions to the Europa League, capping off a miserable Champions League effort.

But things got even worse for Conte in the Europe’s second tier competition. While they ran away with another Serie A title, Juventus suffered semi-final heartache to Benfica, misery that was compounded by the fact the final was to be held at the Juventus Stadium. 

The failure to replicate their domestic standards on the European stage was the only minor blemish during Conte’s magnificent reign and after a sustained spell of domestic triumph, the onus will be on Allegri to finally push this team on in the Champions League. 

Domestic success has always been the priority for Juventus, something that’s emphatically illustrated by their haul of 30 titles, but there are plenty, including former forward David Trezeguet, who think that Serie A triumph now needs to be sacrificed in favour of a Champions League tilt, per Tuttosport (h/t Miles Chambers of Goal.com):

“I would put aside the fourth consecutive league title to stake everything on a European triumph”, said the former front man. “Winning the Champions League gives you the knowledge that you’re the best out there”.

Indeed, winning the European Cup is often considered to be the seal on a truly great team. And this Juventus group is an undeniably outstanding one. Buffon remains one of the world’s finest goalkeepers, they have seasoned, quality defenders and effervescent attackers. The coupe de grace is the midfield trio of Pogba, Pirlo and Arturo Vidal, which has all the requisite attributes to dominate at the highest level.

So far, their season has followed recent pattern. In Serie A they’ve yet to lose a game, winning six and drawing one of their opening seven games, but in Europe, Juventus have won one and lost one. Admittedly, the loss came away to Atletico Madrid, but the swagger that’s been a hallmark of their performances in the Italian top flight was once again amiss.

But this group has been together and blossomed together for a long time now. After Conte’s summer departure, Allegri made no signings that’ll disrupt the first team and you suspect he values the stability that was so astutely instilled by his predecessor. But he’ll be tasked with expediting their ascension; a long awaited one, truth be told.