Juventus boss Luciano Spalletti had several dubious decisions to explain following his team’s 1-2 defeat to Napoli, especially the Kenan Yildiz substitution.
The 66-year-old’s return to the Stadio Maradona swiftly turned sour, with Rasmus Hojlund breaking the deadlock after just six minutes. The Bianconeri could have conceded more goals, but ended up scoring an out-of-the-blue equaliser through Yildiz.
However, a blunder at the back from Weston McKennie gifted Hojlund his second on the night, which was enough to keep the three points in Naples.
Spalletti opted to start with Yildiz as a false 9, supported by Francisco Conceicao, but the manoeuvre didn’t work, so he brought in Jonathan David at the interval.
After returning to his original role as a Number 10, the young Turk’s impact was immediately felt. But after the equaliser, Spalletti decided to hook him for Lois Openda, a decision that benefited Napoli rather than Juventus.
Naturally, the former Italy manager had to justify his call, so he resorted to the numbers, evoking Openda’s relatively hefty transfer fee.
“I wanted them (Yildiz and Conceicao) to play between their three defenders, using an extra midfielder to manage the man-to-man pressing,” said Spalletti in his post-match press conference via JuventusNews24.
Luciano Spalletti (Photo by Francesco Pecoraro/Getty Images)
“Yildiz, as a central forward, always had an opponent behind him and wasn’t able to express himself at his best. We also weren’t good at putting him in the ideal conditions.”
“Last week, you argued that I should rest Kenan. Openda came on in the 75th minute. He’s a player we paid €45-50 million to sign.
“Yildiz isn’t injured, but he needs to do more; he can give us a lot more. He scored, but the team needs a bit more momentum, and he can do more, too.”
Spalletti was also asked about Teun Koopmeiners, who was once again fielded as a left centre-back, but struggled to cope with David Neres’ pace.
“Yes, it was a forced choice. With three defenders out for months, there are no alternatives.
“Koopmeiners is doing well in build-up play and making runs. It’s normal for him to struggle one-on-one against top-level players”
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