Gazzetta inside story: the meeting at which Juventus asked Spalletti to change formation

Spalletti noted down the key points of the post-Lazio meeting/confession in his diary, then drew his own conclusions.

"Do you feel better protected this way?": the meeting in which Juventus asked Spalletti to change formation. Gazzetta.it reports how Juventus came to change formation in recent matches. At Continassa, the meeting room resembles a small theatre with every seat taken: Luciano Spalletti stands in the middle, facing the entire squad. "What do you think?" he asks. Then: "What makes you feel better protected?" The players talk it through and reach their conclusions. That is how Juventus's five-man midfield came about.

In the wake of the crushing defeat to Lazio at the Allianz Stadium, and just hours before the European match against Rennes, Juventus made the tactical shift they later used in the win at Lecce.

After the Lazio match, Spalletti noted down the key points from the meeting and drew his conclusions. Juventus needed points and were still carrying the all-too-heavy burden of injuries, so the manager made a change out of necessity. He admitted after the Lecce match that it was not his preferred solution, as the Gazzetta recalls.

"They talked about what was needed most from a tactical point of view," he told Sky, referring to the meeting after the Lazio match. "We changed something, switching to three midfielders and this 5-3-2, because at times like these, everyone knows it and I know it too, you need more clarity and more solidity. We went for the more solid option and, in looking for that, we found this system. We're happy because, from the very first moment, from the first training session, it was clear that we were able to regain a little more balance as a team."