From Roma to Inter Milan: Six stars who benefited from their new roles under Spalletti | OneFootball

While most Juventus fans were surprised to see Teun Koopmeiners starting at the back in Cremona, it certainly wasn’t the first time Luciano Spalletti deployed a star player in a new role.

The Dutchman is originally a central midfielder, and emerged as one of the finest attacking midfielders in Serie A during his time at Atalanta.

Therefore, the 27-year-old’s move to the backline wasn’t on anyone’s mind, but it did pay dividends, with the player producing a solid display in his unusual role, helping the team prevail by two goals to one.

Luciano Spalletti is no stranger to converting players

Following Koopmeiners’ conversion, La Gazzetta dello Sport took the opportunity to look back at six players whose careers took an upturn thanks to Spalletti’s vision.

The first major ‘spallettata’ case, as the pink newspaper puts it, was David Pizarro, a diminutive Chilean attacking midfielder whom Spalletti turned into a deep-lying playmaker during their time together at Udinese.

Luciano Spalletti (Photo by Marco M. Mantovani/Getty Images)

The player then had a brief and unsuccessful stint at Inter, before reuniting with his mentor at Roma.

Speaking of the Italian capital, this was where Spalletti truly consolidated his status as a visionary, capable of foreseeing things that others can’t.

Not just Totti – Inter, Roma & Napoli stars were transformed under Spalletti

Switching Francesco Totti from a classic Number 10 into a centre-forward was certainly Spalletti’s most famous move, but the Roma icon wasn’t the only one to find success in a new role.

Simone Perrotta was transformed from a hardworking central midfielder into an attacking midfielder, while Amantino Mancini switched from a classic right winger into an inverted left winger who became a menacing presence in the final third, especially when cutting to the middle.

Nevertheless, crowning new registas remains Spalletti’s favourite hobby, so in addition to Pizarro, Marcelo Brozovic and Stanislav Lobotka underwent similar transitions, emerging as one of the finest deep-lying playmakers in Serie A after years marked by mediocrity.