Juventus: Spalletti’s instant impact, solid win at Cremonese | OneFootball

Luciano Spalletti couldn’t revolutionize Juventus in just a few days, but his debut on the Bianconeri bench marks an encouraging first step. In the away match at Cremona, Juve secured an important victory for both morale and the standings, overcoming a team that had yet to lose at home this season.

Juventus, the Spalletti effect is immediate: solid win in Cremona with Tudor’s “outcasts”

“One swallow doesn’t make a summer,” as the saying goes, but yesterday’s performance hints at a clearer, more compact, and finally proactive identity.

Kostic finds the net again, Vlahovic and Openda more involved

Filip Kostic’s lightning-fast goal, decisive after a long period of anonymity, immediately set the tone for the match. The Serbian winger, often sidelined during Tudor’s tenure, found space and confidence again, showing the pace and crossing accuracy that had made him a key player last season.

Up front, Spalletti confirmed the Vlahovic-Openda duo, now more central to the play and less isolated. The Serbian came close to scoring twice, while the Belgian stood out for his intensity and movement, even if he lacked sharpness in the final pass. When the game called for freshness and unpredictability, Conceiçao came on, ready to change the pace in the closing stages.

The Koopmeiners defender experiment convinces

The Tuscan coach immediately made his first “Spalletti move”: deploying Koopmeiners as a central defender. A bold but far from random choice, considering the Dutchman had already played that role at AZ Alkmaar, albeit in a back four.

Placed as the left center-back in a three-man defense, the former Atalanta player showed balance and tactical awareness, standing out with some decisive interventions. The experiment was born out of an emergency in the backline, but the strong performance could push Spalletti to try it again in the future.

“I asked Teun to help out at the back, I knew he could do it,” the coach reportedly confided after the match, a sign of his trust in the player.

Old habits to eliminate

Despite the victory, Juventus showed some flaws. After Cambiaso’s second goal, the Bianconeri dropped too deep, allowing Cremonese to reopen the match with Vardy. Defensive lapses, particularly from Gatti, risked complicating a game that seemed already decided.

These are signals Spalletti will need to analyze carefully: the tendency to drop back and give up ground in the final minutes is a flaw Juve has carried for some time, and against stronger opponents, it could prove costly.

Prospects: Champions League as the minimum goal, but the Scudetto is not a pipe dream

The win in Cremona restores enthusiasm and reignites the Bianconeri’s ambitions. With Champions League qualification as the minimum objective, Juventus can look ahead with confidence.

If their direct rivals slow down, even the race for the Scudetto could become a realistic target again. Spalletti, after all, has shown he can build winning teams, capable of combining tactical organization and intensity.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.