Juventus Go on Retreat to Try to Rally the Troops

Juventus are trying every move to snap out of their funk before firing Luciano Spalletti, who still has the management and the owner’s trust. CEO Giovanni Carnevali, who usually doesn’t meddle in locker-room matters, addressed the players sternly after the embarrassing performance against Genoa, and they will be on retreat ahead of Sunday’s clash with Napoli, Corriere dello Sport reports.

The brass have placed more blame on the footballers, pointing out their inconsistency and lack of character, fight, and concentration in certain instances. The squad has generally bounced back after getting reprimanded, but the reactions haven’t last long.

The Juventus higher-ups aren’t seriously contemplating axing Spalletti yet. It’d be the fifth coaching chance in two years.

He’s under contract until 2028 on a €6M salary, so dismissing him would be expensive. The Old Lady’s hierarchy has no advanced fallback plans in place for now. While fans want Antonio Conte back, hiring him and adjusting the roster to his demands would be extremely onerous. If things keep unraveling, appointing less cumbersome candidates, such as Stefano Pioli or Paulo Sousa, to helm the team until the end of the season, or Didier Deschamps, would be more likely.

Our Take on Juventus and Spalletti

The players surely are at fault too, and the squad is very mediocre at the moment, given all the injuries. The usual pickle in these situations is that you can’t change them all midseason, so the boss ends up paying the price for everybody. It’ll be inevitable if they don’t show signs of life in the next three tilts, as they can’t throw away a whole season so early.