Every word Spalletti said on Juventus contract, system, Vlahovic and Scudetto | OneFootball

Luciano Spalletti explained why he agreed to sign an eight-month contract at Juventus and admitted he hopes to fight for the Scudetto this season.

The Tuscan tactician was unveiled as the new Juventus coach at a press conference on Friday.

Click here to read the live coverage, including Damien Comolli’s quotes.

Spalletti has signed a contract until June 2026, but there’s no automatic option to extend to 2027 if he qualifies for the Champions League.

Spalletti explained why he accepted a short-term contract and said he hopes to bring Juventus back in the race for the Serie A title.

He also reiterated that he didn’t betray Napoli, saying that the club and the city will always have a special place in his heart.

Tomorrow, he will make his debut in an away game at Cremonese. Spalletti admitted that he could confirm a three-man defence on Saturday, although the plan for the future is to develop a system with a four-man defence.

Spalletti’s first Juventus press conference: every word

Luciano Spalletti visits his head coach office (@juventus)

“It’s an amazing feeling because we all know the club’s history and organisation. We know expectations are high. We know many things, but getting inside and learn it practically is always a great emotion.”

NEW CHALLENGE – “The desire to bring this club to the highest levels prevails. I have great respect for this table and Tudor’s work, whom I greet warmly. I’ve had the chance to know him, and I’m certain he’s a fantastic person and a true professional. I’m sure I’ll find a team in good mental condition and well-trained because of the professionalism of my predecessor, and naturally, we must work strongly to have the chance to match the expectations. I’m happy to be here, I thank director Comolli for the nice words he said about me.”

TEAM’S VALUE – “The idea is embodied in the reason why I accepted to come here. If I had not believed that this team has potential, despite difficult moments, why should I have accepted an eight-month contract? I believe I can do a nice job with them. It all passes from there. Desire, self-discipline to get important results, and I see the chance to fix some things. I don’t know the level, but clearly the aim is high for a club like Juventus, who want to get into the Champions League. We need to do a good job and get up to speed because the others run fast.”

STAFF – “I’ve brought for staff members, three are technical, and a fitness coach. We all know each other in the world of football; we just need to take confidence. They are Domenichini, Martuscello, Russo and Sinatti. I wanted to say a couple of words about Daniele Baldini, who decided to end his story as a collaborator. It was his decision, and I was a bit surprised when he told me. I want to thank him for all he made available to me and everything he taught me. He has all the qualities, I’m sorry, but I have to accept his desire.”

ATTACK – “Obviously, it’s part of my job. It’s stimulating. Goals are fundamental because you need goals to win games. Attacking football is another important quality, but the essential thing is to be a group that understands what to do on the pitch in different circumstances. If we are too stretched and have different thoughts, it becomes more difficult.”

PLAYERS – “Dusan’s analysis was correct. The players realise what they are taking and what they are giving back to a club that believes in them. As for what I told Perin, it’s just a joke. We all know that coaches depend on the footballers. Coaches can be good, but the players’ quality makes the difference. It was a way to involve them and make them realise that things done on the pitch will determine my future. Luckily, for my career and what football has given me, I don’t need guarantees on my future. I think it’s quite fair to make assessments. I’m not forced to stay in a certain situation because of a contract. Therefore, we do this experience together, and I find it a very simple and honest and clear situation. We start working, trying to cooperate between all the people in the Juventus world, who are people of absolute value. At the end, we’ll draw conclusions, but I had no difficulty in accepting a contract of this nature. On the contrary, given what happened in the past, I would have done the same if I were Juventus.”

SCUDETTO AND VLAHOVIC – “I hope I can get back and be involved in the race for the Scudetto. It’s what we were discussing with the players yesterday. We must aim for the top, and in this case, the top is the title race. Nine games have been played, still 29 to go. Many games. I’ve seen any sort of thing in my over 30-year career. I don’t see why I should settle. I have absolute respect for the quality of these players.

“With Vlahovic, it’s easy. I have to talk to him. I haven’t received any restrictions from the club regarding any player. I’ll see what he will do and his responses. Based on the last game against Udinese, he has clear intentions, and that behaviour fixes everything because he played an excellent game.”

SYSTEM – “Today I have the first training session. As I said before, I respect the work that has been done before, so perhaps we might give continuity to what has been done. At the same time, giving all the info to our opponents is not correct, but I have to answer.

“Clearly, there are some players who would prefer playing in different roles. In both cases, we must make sure there’s availability from the players. At the same time, it means we’ll also try to do something different with a four-man defence, rather than a three-man defence.”

CREMONESE – “I’ve watched many Serie A games this season, and I didn’t see many teams dominating. I watched the last games of Inter and Napoli, who I consider among the best-equipped. They also lost some games. We are not in a condition to be arrogant about anything. So we must have absolute respect for everyone. I don’t like mottos; the message must always come from the ball on the turf, that’s the right way to talk.”

MENTALITY – “Self-discipline always makes the difference. When I was a kid, I used to travel through autostops. I’ve entered dressing rooms in every division in football, and I’ve always respected every person I’ve met. I even knew if the opponents’ warehouse worker had a cat or a dog. Attention, work, availability to become friends inside the dressing room because it’s always through co-operation, passion and friendship that any team, in any sport, can go to the next level. We must share quality and difficulty, and after some time, you wake up one day and you have evolved.”

NAPOLI – “I left something in every city I lived in. In Naples, something superior came out for the beauty of football and what we accomplished, a fantastic and important Scudetto. I’ve established a special connection with those people. It won’t change on my side. Today I did blood tests and he did it on the other [right] arm because here [left] I have the tattoo and I didn’t want anything to be touched there. Nothing will change for me. I will always have many friends in Naples. They’ve also texted me. I will return to Naples, it’s a city that will forever be in my heart, regardless of my professional decisions.

“Let me add something about extrapolating things I’ve said about Naples, Napoli and the end of that contract and about the fact I would not have worn the tracksuit of any other club. That was referred to that season. Of course, I told the president that if he had released me, I wouldn’t have signed for any other club, as I did. It’s not that I have to stop being a coach because I spent a season at Napoli. I had to respect that option for one season, out of respect for the club and the city. But after that season, I was free to make my experiences. Those who use this situation to attack me, decontextualise it from reality, and you can understand their intentions.”

JUVENTUS DNA – “When you go on the pitch, it is fundamental to win games. However, given that football is also a show, one tries to make a good product, a product of quality for those watching. You [journalists] are also looking for new words. New words don’t tire the mind. It’s repeating things that flatten people’s creativity. So we are looking for something beautiful to see. I’ve always perceived this atmosphere and quality in this stadium. But first of all, we must win on the pitch and then talk about something else.”

ROME, ITALY – OCTOBER 26: Gustav Isaksen of SS Lazio compete for the ball with Teun Koopmeiners and Mattia Perin during the Serie A match between SS Lazio and Juventus FC at Stadio Olimpico on October 26, 2025 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Marco Rosi – SS Lazio/Getty Images)

KOOPMEINERS – “I know Koop well because I followed him with other clubs in the past. Then, he cost a lot, and we couldn’t sign him. When I spoke to him yesterday, I reminded him that we had spoken on the phone. I had tried to convince him, even if our resources were inferior to the club’s [Atalanta’s] demands. I still have the same idea. I think he’s a holding midfielder or a box-to-box midfielder. Sometimes he’s also played as a centre-back. Here again, we have to congratulate a coach, Gasp, who coached him well and took the best out of this player, putting him in a different position. He presses the opponents and he has feet that, when he kicks towards the goal, know where the ball will end up.

“If you cage him, make him play with his shoulders to the goal, close to the opponents’ defensive line, he doesn’t have the quality of Yildiz or Openda, or footballers who were born for that role and that position on the pitch. He has other qualities, but Gasp was excellent in taking the most out of him in that position, from a footballer who had other skill sets.”

IMPACT – “I don’t know what impact I can have. I know my attitude, from the morning I wake up until I go to sleep at night. I know that, towards my behaviour, the players can enter a mindset that can give them something. I’ve been doing this job for over 30 years, and I’ve been lucky because I’ve won many games. I trust that history, I trust my behaviour. I’m aware that those making the difference are always the footballers, no doubt about it. At the same time, however, having complicity and availability in doing things and trusting our abilities can be something that will bring us to having results. I don’t know how big, but this pathway we have in front can make us change things. On the pitch, you have to understand certain things; football has evolved continuously, and you must understand the moments on the field, how to behave and be in sync. This makes the difference to be a team with superior quality and not just the addition of single footballers. If we all give our best and are available, that growth can be enough to be worthy of Juventus. That’s what we’ll work on.”