Gianluigi Buffon Concedes That Juventus Could Struggle to Retain Serie A Title This Season

Following a successful 2016/17 season for Juventus, seeing the Turin based side win a sixth successive Scudetto and a Copa Italia, club captain Gianluigi Buffon has revealed he feels it will be tough for the Italian champions to retain their title.

With the likes of AS Roma, AC Milan, Inter Milan and Napoli having all significantly strengthened their squads it is likely that Juventus will face their toughest contest for the Serie A title in recent years.

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Speaking to the press after Juve's penalty shootout win over Roma on Sunday, as reported by FourFourTwo, Buffon said: "It was a good tour of the US and important for us to find our form towards the start of the season.

"It'll be very difficult for Juventus this year, because many teams have strengthened, such as Roma, Inter and Milan, while Napoli kept their stars. Juve believe in our capabilities, though, in the values that brought us success and think we can still give our best."

The resurgence of big clubs such as AC Milan and Inter Milan is cause for concern for the Italian champions,  as they are more than capable of claiming points against some of the league's top sides. 

Meanwhile current title challengers Roma and Napoli also continue to strengthen their ranks as they each look to challenge Juventus' long reigning dominance.

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However, while Juventus' rivals have been buying in reinforcements for their squad, the Old Lady have also been active in the transfer market, signing Federico Bernadeschi, Douglas Costa, Mattia De Sciglio, Rodrigo Bentacur and Wojciech Szczesny as well as recruiting loanees Juan Cuardrado and Medhi Benatia on a permanent basis.

Juventus face their final match of the pre-season on Saturday as they travel to London, facing Mauricio Pochettino's Tottenham Hotspur before travelling back to Italy to face Napoli in the Supercoppa Italiana on August 13.