Miralem Pjanic is becoming Juventus’ next ‘Maestro’ and is well on his way to emulating the great Andrea Pirlo

Andrea Pirlo needs no introduction to fans of Champions League football. For over a decade, the Italian midfielder bestrode the competition and consistently made his presence felt, weighing in with key goals and assists as he helped AC Milan lift the trophy on two occasions. He was also part of the 2005 Rossoneri side that collapsed against Liverpool in Istanbul,then swapped one of the peninsula’s giant clubs for another as he joined Juventus in the summer of 2011.

Four years – and four Serie A titles – later, he helped the Bianconeri to their first European final of the post-Calciopoli era, tasting defeat at the hands of Lionel Messi and Barcelona. Opting to join New York City FC, that would be his last appearance for the Old Lady and the 2015/16 campaign proved to be a difficult one for Max Allegri’s men. They finished behind Manchester City in the group stage after a loss to Sevilla and two disappointing draws against Bundesliga outfit Borussia Mönchengladbach.

Unable to unlock either defence, their progress would come to an abrupt halt in the last 16 as their runner’s up spot resulted in a tough draw against Bayern Munich. Eliminated 6-4 on aggregate, the club’s management team recognised the need to act and, for the first time under President Andrea Agnelli’s stewardship, they would invest heavily to add headline-grabbing stars to their squad.

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Juventus smashed their club record fee by paying €90m to activate Gonzalo Higuain’s release clause with title rivals Napoli, then doing the same again in order to bring in AS Roma midfielder Miralem Pjanic. The duo would make a major impact, the Bosnian creating chances with increasing regularity while his new Argentinian team-mate tucked them away and simultaneously rubbished his reputation as a big-game choker.

While Higuain’s goals fired Juve to another Champions League final alongside their Serie A and Coppa Italia double, the current campaign has seen them face yet more changes and Pjanić has firmly found himself centre stage. As the season began, Allegri looked to continue with the 4-2-3-1 formation that was the foundation of last year’s success, but as 2018 approached he deployed a hybrid 4-3-2-1/4-3-1-2 system.

In attack that has meant Mario Mandžukić moving in slightly from his role on the left, while Paulo Dybala or Douglas Costa feature behind the Croatian and Higuain. In midfield, the addition of a third player has seen Pjanić move into the middle of the trio, now occupying the same space once graced by Pirlo.

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“I feel responsibility on my shoulders at Juventus, because Allegri asks me to make the team tick,” the 27-year-old told Undici magazine back in December. “If he gets angry with me, it’s because he wants me to get nothing wrong, to be one of the best. He believes in me and that is motivating. When I arrived at Juve, Allegri said that in future he saw me playing in front of the defence. I put myself at his disposal and now I am happy in a role where I can really help the team.”

Indeed it seems this has been the plan all along, with the Tuscan Coach telling Sky Italia that he believed Pjanić would “become one of the best in the world in that position” shortly after he made the €32m switch from Roma. With six goals and eight assists to his name already this term, he is well on his way to repaying Allegri’s faith and has done so in a variety of different ways to help the team.

Pjanić has opened up opposing defences in open play just as Pirlo used to, stroking the ball around the pitch quickly, efficiently and accurately to connect with 90 per cent of his 74.4 pass attempts per 90 minutes. He has also upped his work rate defensively, weighing in with 2.4 tackles and 2.1 interceptions per outing in Serie A, but it is unquestionably at set pieces where the parallels with his predecessor are most obvious.

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While an ability to set up goals for others from corners and free kicks adds to Juve’s firepower, it is with his own direct shots from those situations where Pjanić excels. He was taught by Brazilian specialist Juninho Pernambucano when the pair were team-mates at Lyon, but the students has now arguably surpassed the master.

“Mire’s ability is to hit them in different ways, with curve, with power and effect,” Juninho told La Gazzetta dello Sport last year. “The trajectories are unpredictable, when the ball comes off his foot it often changes direction and that makes it difficult for the goalkeeper. Given how young he is, he’s already among the best in that speciality.” High praise indeed, but according to Opta, no player – including Pirlo – has scored more free kicks (14) in Serie A than Pjanić in the last ten years, a remarkable feat given he didn’t arrive in Italy until August 2011.

Fans of the Old Lady have certainly noted his impact, seemingly dubbing him with a nickname that follows in the footsteps of the “Mozart” or “Maestro” monikers once bestowed upon Pirlo. Labelled ‘The Pianist” by Juventus supporters on the Curva Sud, they will hope Tottenham are dancing to Miralem Pjanić’s tune over the course of Wednesday evening’s second leg.