I’m Mr. Wes, I solve problems. Paraphrasing Tarantino, Juve must thank Weston McKennie, who, with his goal in the 67th minute of the “tignoso” match (in Spalletti’s words) against Pafos on the 6th matchday of the Champions League championship phase, broke the deadlock (2-0 at the end, David the other goal) and prevented the Bianconeri from complicating their European path even more. And, above all, for the coach to end up in the midst of a difficult results crisis to manage, after the defeat of Naples and with direct clashes with Bologna and Rome on the horizon. Now, however, the playoff objective in the top European competition is absolutely within reach (17th place and 3 points ahead of Benfica, first of those eliminated and next opponent in January at the Stadium). The coach from Certaldo, however, will have to work hard to transform this team, which struggles tremendously to propose a maneuvered game and lives almost exclusively on the inventions of its best individuals (Yildiz and Conceiçao).
ZHEGROVA IS THERE As indicated on the eve of the match, Spalletti starts Edon Zhegrova for the first time since the start (who had not started since 14 December 2024 in Marseille-Lille) and leaves Thuram out in the middle, to the advantage of Miretti. For the rest, it is the same team that started the second half in Naples. Carcedo, on the other hand, prefers Joao Correia, returning after a two-match suspension, to Quina and confirms the basis of the team capable of surprising so far, with a haul of 6 points in 5 matchdays on their debut in the Champions League. It takes the Kosovar just over two minutes to light up one of his coils from the right to converge towards the center, but he lacks precision in finishing. He will try again in the 20th minute (left just wide) before being replaced at half-time by Conceiçao, but in general it is a very tiring evening for him and for Juve. Yes, because Spalletti asks his team to defend at 5, but, in the offensive phase, the two midfield wingers (McKennie and Cambiaso) and Yildiz are given the task of attacking the half spaces on David’s sides, with the former Lille player instead giving width on the right and Kalulu throwing himself deep. The problem, however, is the same as that shown in the majority of the latest outings: slow movement of the ball, little verticality (the only one who tries is Koopmeiners), and many measurement errors (Miretti and Cambiaso the most inaccurate). Thus, for Pafos, who defend themselves with order, quite low, but with two lines that are not too tight, the dangers are limited. Indeed, the Cypriot team even allows itself to create the two most dangerous opportunities at the start: in the 5th minute, with Anderson Silva who goes just wide with a backheel following Correia’s assist (McKennie caught behind) and in the 6th minute, with Di Gregorio doing well to instinctively repel a poisonous rebound between Kelly and Cambiaso from Bruno’s cross. And, in the 32nd minute, Pafos even hit the post, with a sort of moving penalty from the Brazilian center forward, at the end of a nice move orchestrated by Orsic. Juve’s responses (apart from the only shot on target of the first half, in the 8th minute by Yildiz, with Michail attentive in the rebound), come only from the squares: Koopmeiners, in the 10th minute, smashes his header to the ground and puts it over the top following a corner kick; Jonathan David, three minutes before the break, devours the opening goal a few meters from the line. Freed by a challenge from Kelly, again from a corner, the Canadian incredibly kicks outside the six yard area. He will have the opportunity to make up for it, but, at half-time, the Stadium whistles loudly.
DEADLY ONE-TWO In the second half, in addition to the entry of Conceiçao for Zhegrova, Spalletti redesigned his Juve with a 4-1-4-1: Koopmeiners advanced alongside Miretti, with Locatelli in the playmaker role. McKennie and Cambiaso form the defensive line with Kalulu and Kelly. The entry of the Portuguese is crucial, because, beyond a flash attempt by Koopmeiners from the edge (Michail rejects and Yildiz lifts over the crossbar), Juve, in addition to the usual Turkish 10, can now have an unpredictability outlet on the right too. At the hour mark, the son of art somehow finds himself in front of Michail, but his attempt at the near post is blocked for a corner by the Pafos goalkeeper. The pressure from the Bianconeri is stronger than in the first half and Spalletti supports it by bringing in a second striker (Openda) for Locatelli. To break the deadlock, however, it takes a shot (even a lucky one) from the “little wizard” Weston: on a short corner taken by Conceiçao, Cambiaso slots it in for McKennie, who turns and kicks from inside the area, finding the decisive deflection from Goldar to lift the ball under the crossbar. As if a weight had been lifted from their shoulders, Juve soon found the second goal. Conceiçao is still the “director”: he frees himself in mid-field, starts vertically and widens to the left for Yildiz, who in turn serves David in the center of the area: the Canadian, very alone, coolly scores, this time, his second goal with the black and white shirt. Juve closed with their first clean sheet of the season in the Champions League and their second victory in the last three games (albeit against Udinese and Pafos) with a two-goal difference. For now this is fine, but already on Sunday at the “Dall’Ara” Spalletti will need more.
