The Juventus coach is left with a bitter taste despite the important victory against Pafos: “At times, we did the bare minimum: there are a lot of things to fix”

Looking rather grim, despite the victory and the three crucial points earned against Pafos—which have reignited Juventus’ hopes of qualifying for the Champions League round of 16—Luciano Spalletti had this to say: “It was essential to win because victories are what set many things right. But we needed to do more. At times, we did the bare minimum; I even saw some embarrassing moments. In the second half, though, we loosened up.” Why didn’t he make any changes earlier? “I was afraid of causing confusion by making changes in the first 45 minutes, but then we were more organized and determined. These matches are always difficult; Pafos had conceded very few goals up to that point. And as for the difficulties we’re having on defense, we need to bring in a right center-back so Kalulu can play as a pure fullback—and Cambiaso too, who’s very offensive but struggles a bit when he has to defend.” In the first half, however, Juve risked conceding on at least three or four occasions: “We gave up too much and didn’t make the most of our strengths, failing to capitalize on our chances. That’s how it is for now. My opinion of the players, however, hasn’t changed, even though they’re not doing enough compared to what I expect. Far too little…”

little time—  The Bianconeri coach continued his analysis, also touching on the fact that he took over mid-season: “ There’s little time; even after the Napoli game, we had a flight delay and didn’t get back until 5 a.m. Training sessions have been minimal and focused on tactics—this morning we worked on a few set pieces. I’m struggling to regain rhythm and intensity; I don’t have the chance to really push the guys. Yildiz? I saved him for the final 20 minutes, hoping he’d recover better for Bologna and trying to take some of the stress off him. The same goes for Miretti and Adzic, who has quality. There are some things we need to sort out. This team needs to be brought up to speed.” He concluded by addressing the formation: “I hope to soon have a right-footed center back because right now the team is too limited: the fullbacks give up a bit in defense; we’re working on it, but I want to develop the 4-2-3-1.”