Luciano Spalletti new Juventus coach: short contract and almost unconditional choice. All the limits of a marriage that had no alternatives but which reveals two weaknesses
Luciano Spalletti is the new coach of Juventus. The first truly chosen by Damien Comollithe new strongman of the Juventus management who had undergone the confirmation of Igor Tudor in June due to lack of time and alternatives. Eight-month contract, as an interim coach, with automatic renewal in the event of qualification for the Champions League which is the minimum essential objective that the club has set itself and transferred to the new technician. With Europe that counts and the related revenues, it will be possible for Elkann to try to straighten out the crying accounts. Without it, we would have to embark on yet another Year Zero of a trajectory that in the last four years has burned through projects, stability, managers, coaches and a mountain of money.
The former national coachwho came out of his experience leading the Azzurri very badly, first at the 2024 European Championship and then in the disastrous first part of the qualifiers for the next World Cup, he found the best way to get back into the game. We must be honest: it is difficult to find a better option for the Old Lady in the heart of autumn – Spalletti is still the coach of Napoli’s scudetto in 2023, not a century ago – and impossible to imagine a more luxurious stage for the coach from Certaldo. He himself explained it when he admitted to cultivating “the ambition to make right what has happened to me lately“.
Spalletti accepted Juventus without conditions
This is why it is understandable that, upon Comolli’s call, he offered no resistance whatsoever but guaranteed an almost unconditional opening. The man wants redemption and bets on himself and his ideas. In the past he has almost always been right as a substitute, earning himself the label of fix-it and even confirmations or career advancements.
The genesis of an anomalous contract for a technician of that level is all here and it is a beautiful story that deserves to be followed with passion and sympathy. Then, however, comes the pragmatic part of the question and it is not difficult to come to the conclusion that a coach like Spalletti who accepts a team like Juventus at any cost is an admission of weakness and not strength.
Juventus is weak and continues to be unwilling (or unable) to plan in the long term, held back by the constraints of past mistakes and a chronic lack of vision that is profoundly changing its DNA. Why didn’t Comolli tie Spalletti for longer than through a system of clauses? Why doesn’t he believe in his choice? Difficult. Because today the horizon of the Old Lady is limited, however, it may be the correct answer and it is no consolation for those who love the black and white colours.
Conte, Allegri and Gasperini: long contracts for strong man projects
Luciano Spalletti is also weak as he accepts conditions incompatible with his status. The fairy tale of changing times and managers who can no longer expect long contracts is, in fact, a fairy tale. Also Max Allegri he wanted and needed to return, but from Milan he wanted an agreement until 2027 with a further option. Antonio Conte he married Napoli in 2024, making De Laurentiis committed until at least 2027. Gian Piero Gasperini he took Roma on the condition that he opens a cycle expiring, for now, in June 2028.
What does it mean? That strong technicians, that is, strong men, called to strong destinies (Pallatian quote) lay the foundations in football also through contracts that certify them in the eyes of everyone, managers and locker room, as central to future choices. Not something that smells to a temporary manager. The only risk lies here, hidden in the folds of a story that seems written specifically to enhance the romantic side of a double choice.
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