The Luciano Spalletti era started for Juventus on Saturday with a 2-1 victory over Cremonese. That scoreline could’ve been a lot more had one or two things gone a little differently, but the new-look Juve had little ultimate
problem despite Cremonese making things slightly too interesting with a late goal.
How did the players look in Spalletti’s first day in charge? Let’s take a look.
MICHELE DI GREGORIO – 6.5. An uneventful day for Di Gregorio, who faced only one shot on target besides Jamie Vardy’s late strike. Keeping the defense together was especially important for him given the unorthodox nature of the back line. (We’ll get to that).
PIERRE KALULU – 6. Solid on his side of the back three, and was a useful extra body in attack when he came forward.
FEDERICO GATTI – 5.5. Not a great look to be outmuscled by a 38-year-old dude and then fail to catch up to him before he could shoot. It marred an otherwise good game that saw him make seven clearances and complete 91.7 percent of his passes.
TEUN KOOPMEINERS – 6. Meant to try to overload the midfield when Juve was in attack, he did so at times but wasn’t the biggest offensive influence on the team. Defended competently and made a big double block late on.
ANDREA CAMBIASO – 7.5. In the right place to poach what was ultimately the deciding goal, and was the biggest creator on the team. He had a game-high three key passes and had a few other well-placed balls fly through the area that didn’t reach a teammate. He’s played his last two games on the right and they’ve been his two best games of the season by a wide margin.
MANUEL LOCATELLI – 6.5. Desperately unlucky not to score in the first half when Audero got the barest of touches to maneuver his shot onto the post, and was inches over the crossbar on another shot. Defensively he really shone, making a game-high six tackles and adding a pair of clearances as well. Something of a statement to a coach that never rated him when he was in charge of the national team.
KHÉPHREN THURAM – 6. Saw a lot more of him carrying the ball through midfield the way he did in some of his best moments last year. Added the omph to the midfield that he’s been known for so far in his Juve tenure.
FILIP KOSTIC – 7. Reacted perfectly to Vandeputte’s to give Juve the early lead and was excellent on the left side. He had a pair of dribbles as well as a pair of clearances. Also played a huge part in Juve’s press, keeping Cremonese’s wing-backs pinned back.
WESTON McKENNIE – 6.5. Made a pair of key passes and a couple more that didn’t register on the stat sheet but were nonetheless essential, like his feed to Openda in the run-up to the opening goal. Part of a very effective press.
LOÏS OPENDA – 5.5. Got himself into good positions all night but still clearly lacks the confidence to act quickly on the field. Could’ve scored once or twice had he taken his shots earlier.
DUSAN VLAHOVIC – 6. Could’ve had himself another goal but Audero saved his shot well after an audacious turn. Absolutely ferocious in the press.
SUBS
FRANCISCO CONCIEÇÃO – 6. Set up Cambiaso’s goal with a nice move, and made some trouble when he got the ball.
VASILIJE ADZIC – NR. Made a pair of tackles and a key pass, in 12 minutes. Nice to see him back on the field.
JOÃO MÁRIO – NR. On to help see things out to win late.
JONATHAN DAVID – NR. Only 10 touches in his six minutes on the field.
DANIELE RUGANI – NR. On to see out the game once Cremonese pulled closer.
MANAGER ANALYSIS
Spalletti showed a heck of a lot of gumption in making the tweak he made to the system given he only had one training session before the game. His use of Koopmeiners in the back to essentially serve as a super-deep-lying playmaker and essentially an extra midfielder in possession was an interesting experiment, and not one I think Spalletti would care to repeat against higher-level opposition, but an interesting wrinkle nonetheless.
More than any individual tactical tweak, though, was the general feeling that the players were freer to do what they want to do on the pitch. Tudor’s system is defined by its rigidity, and as Juve’s winless streak stretched on, it was clear that was putting stress on the players. Wednesday’s win saw some of that rigidity melt away, and on Saturday it was clear they were enjoying the freedom Spalletti had afforded them. When a team is clearly having more fun on the pitch, the play is almost invariably better—and this team was clearly enjoying themselves more than they have in weeks.
It’s obviously far too early to truly ascertain how Spalletti wants to play on a regular basis, but if the freedom we saw the players afforded is the norm, we could see a much happier and more engaged squad over the course of the season.
LOOKING AHEAD
Two more games loom before the last international break of the season. First, Juve host Sporting on Tuesday in the Champions League, then they welcome cross-town rivals Torino for the first Derby della Mole of the year.
