Spalletti hails Juventus display: “This can change careers, we deserve the Champions League” | OneFootball

Juventus head coach Luciano Spalletti only had words of praise for his players, who produced a stellar performance against Bologna on Sunday.

The Bianconeri pushed forward with intent right off the bat, and it only took them 90 seconds to break through the deadlock through Jonathan David, who headed home Pierre Kalulu’s cross.

The home side had several chances to kill off the contest in the first half, but they had to wait until Khephren Thuram’s second-half introduction to open up a two-goal cushion. The French midfielder rose above his marker to nod home Weston McKennie’s sublime cross.

Luciano Spalletti explains the importance of the win over Bologna

After the contest, Spalletti lauded the importance of tackling the match with the right attitude, while explaining that this can be considered a career-defining performance for some of his players.

“What became crucial for us was not getting the attitude wrong in this game. I would have been disappointed if, tomorrow morning, while analysing the match, I had to comment on the attitude,” said the 67-year-old in one of his post-match interviews via JuventusNews24.

“That didn’t happen because from the very first moment, they immediately decided to take control of the game. We talked about keeping a high tempo, also because Bologna—as Italiano rightly said—had played three matches this week.

“The players deserved to take home this important win, because this is the kind of match that can truly change careers. Careers don’t change based on the number of games, but on the decisions made in key moments of certain matches, and on the focus and intent you manage to maintain.”

The manager also cherishes the solid bond between his Juventus players, who enjoy celebrating together, as illustrated by the second goal.

“Friendship, relationships, enjoying being together—these are things that can improve the team, because you’re no longer playing as eleven individuals, but as a unit built on shared ideas and team concepts.

“I don’t know what they came up with, but seeing them all celebrate together like that is the most important thing.

“It’s even better to see the goalscorer call his teammates over to share the moment, because everything comes from relationships and connections.”

Spalletti praises Juventus squad but seeks reinforcement

With this victory, Juventus solidified their fourth place in the table, putting five points between them and  Como and Roma, while also reducing the gap with Milan and Napoli to just three points.

Spalletti believes his team is proving that they fully deserve to play in the Champions League next season.

“We showed that we have players who deserve to play in the Champions League. We had an opportunity tonight that couldn’t be wasted, and we made the most of it.”

The Tuscan tactician feels that this squad boasts players of high calibre, but they were a bit too timid at times.

“I was curious to see them up close because you could sense they were a group of good guys, who sometimes were too nice, even a bit timid.

“They needed to free themselves from others’ opinions—they had to break away from being seen as too ordinary. They’ve shown they are of real quality and level.”

That being said, Spalletti admitted that Juventus is still lacking some quality among the ranks, in what could be an implicit message to the management.

“In terms of evaluation, we might lack certain characteristics that would complete us at the same level, but we have strong players.

“It’s not that they were lacking quality—we just needed different attributes to round out the squad. They show it through their qualities, and even if we’re missing some elements that would complete the team, they’ve always behaved perfectly.”