Spalletti celebrates without illusions: "Now we need to grow quickly."
He arrives, changes everything, and returns home with three crucial points. And in Luciano Spalletti's first time in black and white, the entire repertoire of his teammates that has always accompanied him is also present . He begins with his hands in his pockets, still, or rather immobile, almost staring into space: practically a statue, despite the Bianconeri already celebrating his first goal in charge after less than 90 seconds of play. And he ends, on the contrary, agitated against everything and everyone, even picking up a yellow card for protesting a decision on a reversed throw-in that referee Chiffi had already given back to Juve. Then, after the liberating final whistle, another great Spalletti classic arrives: that brisk walk with his hand outstretched to chase and congratulate his colleague on duty, Davide Nicola. Only after that can he, perhaps, loosen up a bit.
Calmly analyzing the performance and decisions, such as the (perfect) one of dropping Koopmeiners to the back three: "We need to grow quickly, and there's potential in some players. I trust them, I know them a little, but the level required at Juve means they'll feel the pressure of the back three. The win will allow us to work hard, with more confidence. Koopmeiners in defense? The intention was to have an extra man in midfield, he played a great game, he was the best defender of all."
SERIE A
Spalletti's Juve start strong, Cremonese knocked out by Fabio Riva.
Spalletti's first spell on the Juventus bench, or rather in front of it, was rich and intense, the adrenaline rush he himself needed to bounce back after the Azzurri disappointment: "I've always done this, and that's how it works. We need this connection, then you have to do things well to please those who love you. I hope I succeed, since I wasn't very successful with the national team. Sharing emotions helps you grow as a team," Lucio says.
At the same time, the Bianconeri have already shown they've succumbed to their new coach's charm: even after just one training session, a Juve team has emerged that's completely different in spirit, even if the tactical plan is seemingly similar to the previous one. This Juve team is learning and interacting with the coach minute by minute, even during matches. This is also because Spalletti's statuesque form only lasts long enough to understand when to actually take to the field.
He shakes his head when the Bianconeri insist on building from the back on goal kicks, applauds sloppy but valuable plays like those of Gatti and Vlahovic, and waves his arms if some of the outbound moves don't go as planned. In the 42nd minute, he gives a live lesson, with Thuram and Openda reporting to record undigested moves, and Vlahovic acts as assistant to translate everything into English for the Belgian. In the second half, he picks up the pace, the tension for the stakes increases, he despairs over Openda's misplaced counterattack, and even has time to kick the bottle when Vlahovic misses in front of goal. He checks with Perin to make a few more adjustments before the tense finale. It's a spectacle within a spectacle. But what matters is that the first match ended exactly as he wanted, with the three points. Speaking of which, in Serie A, there are 999: the derby is the first chance to break the 1,000 mark.
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