"It doesn't worry me at all that people say Juventus aren't playing well and winning," coach Massimiliano Allegri insisted a fortnight ago.
"I don't know what 'playing well' means, anyway. What matters is the result. People remember who wins titles and not who plays 'well' or not."
That may be true of some football followers but what is beyond dispute is that Juventus is not presently playing well enough to be considered a serious Champions League challenger. Wednesday's 1-1 draw with Lyon was further evidence of that fact.
Going into the game in Turin, the Old Lady appeared to be in rude health - but looks can be deceiving. Saturday's win over Napoli had helped them open up a four-point lead at the summit of Serie A, while the Bianconeri knew that another victory over Lyon, whom they had defeated in France on matchday three with just 10 men, would seal a spot in the last 16 of the Champions League with two group games to spare.
However, despite being gifted a goal by their Ligue 1 opponents, with Mouctar Diakhaby naively and needlessly pushing over Stefano Sturaro in the area 13 minutes in, Juventus never impressed.
It had been hoped that a switch to 4-3-1-2 might bring some much-needed creativity to a midfield that has looked worryingly bereft of ideas this term by allowing the struggling Miralem Pjanic to move forward into the trequartista role. The Bosnian began brightly, very nearly breaking the offside trap just over 90 seconds into the game, but that was as good as it got for the ex-Lyon man.
Gonzalo Higuain, meanwhile, racked up his ninth goal in 15 appearances in all competitions for Juve since his summer switch by converting from the penalty spot but the Argentine squandered a glorious chance to double Juve's lead midway through the first half.
Higuain is good - but the question is still being asked: is he good enough to win Juve the Champions League?
The 28-year-old will get more chances to prove his worth to the Bianconeri but perhaps not as many as he would have expected when he first touched down in Turin because the truth of the matter is that Juve still looks imbalanced in midfield.
Allegri's decision to change formation - which was, admittedly, somewhat motivated by the loss of a member of his brilliant back three in Giorgio Chiellini - simply did not work, with the Italian champions looking as muddled as ever in midfield. More players, more problems.
Furthermore, the switch also stripped the side of its usual attacking threat out wide, meaning Higuain and Mario Mandzukic didn't even have any decent crosses with which to work.
Indeed, it was significant that the best chance Juve created from open play came from a mistake, with Emanuel Mammana getting caught in possession by Mandzukic, who then teed Higuain up for a sitter that his strike partner inexplicably skied over the bar.
It was a crucial miss, too, as Corentin Tolisso's late - but thoroughly deserved - leveler, coupled with Sevilla's resounding win over Dinamo Zagreb, means that Juve is now two points behind the Rojiblancos with two rounds remaining and, thus, once again in serious danger of failing to progress in first place from a group of which it initially appeared to have complete control.
Last year, Juve's inability to win in Seville resulted in the club being paired with Bayern Munich in the last 16. Juve played well against the Bavarians but it went out and, as Allegri would no doubt argue, the result is all that matters. If the team is to avoid suffering a similar fate this season, he will need to resolve their outstanding midfield issues before they visit the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan again in three weeks' time.