Neither of Juve’s two new strikers has managed to earn the trust needed to change the hierarchy. And now the Bianconeri coach has gone straight for them…

A bit of carrot and a bit of stick. In the post-match interview after Juventus-Cagliari, Spalletti went straight for David and Openda, two of his team’s weak points so far this season. Neither of them has managed to gain the confidence needed to shake up the hierarchy in the forward line, allowing Vlahovic (whose contract is expiring) the luxury of appearing much more solid and promising than them. The Juve coach wanted to address the issue by overlapping tactical issues with character issues, reaching the point that “we need a little more grit to solve things.” Because, Spalletti said, “If we are timid, the others notice and slap us around because we don’t react.”

Spalletti is working more on David and Openda’s mentality. He knows that both could increase Juve’s value by joining forces with Vlahovic, who is a more static center forward. Speaking about the new signings, the coach explained that “they are both center forwards, but Openda is better at attacking spaces, while David is more relational and could therefore also do well as a second striker.” However, more is needed to earn the respect of the environment, which continues to rumble about mistakes: “They are very sensitive guys, and I gladly embrace them because you can see that they need it. It’s a time when they should score two or three goals to gain confidence and do what they know how to do with more serenity. But in soccer, you also have to earn it, so you have to succeed on your own.”