Juventus head coach Luciano Spalletti thanked the players who gave him a pleasant birthday by beating Pisa 4-0.
The Bianconeri were in dire need of a positive result after going winless in their last four Serie A contests and finding themselves trailing behind Roma and Como in the Champions League race.
Therefore, this big result at the Allianz Stadium restored the team’s confidence ahead of the final 10 rounds of the season.
Luciano Spalletti reveals why he substituted Federico Gatti & Jonathan David
After failing to find a breakthrough in the first period, the Bianconeri were much more clinical and tenacious after the interval. Andrea Cambiaso, Khephren Thuram, Kenan Yildiz and Jeremie Boga were all in target.
Interestingly, Spalletti had taken off Federico Gatti and Jonathan David after an unconving first half for both players. Nevertheless, the manager insisted that neither player was the problem.
“We’re dealing with intelligent players, so I don’t go in there growling, I don’t risk damaging relationships,” said the 67-year-old in his post-match press conference via JuventusNews24.
“They understand things well. Something tactically in the first half didn’t work. If you’re not technically sharp, they get their two wing-backs going. If you can’t make the distances right, you struggle. Two chances for us, two for them, with that kind of dynamic, it becomes difficult.
“We don’t have wing-backs with that kind of frame, engine, horsepower. I fixed what I could fix. I made that substitution not because Gatti did something wrong, quite the opposite.
“To play with three at the back, I absolutely needed a left-sided centre-back (Lloyd Kelly) to start the build-up, and on the flanks, I had to adjust something otherwise they would have carved us open.
“That way we could play to our strengths, in tight spaces and in one-on-one situations, and our match came out. We also did some good things and our fans responded well again tonight. At half-time I didn’t make a speech; it was just dialogue.”
Interestingly, Spalletti argued that David would have found it easier to score had he stayed on the pitch in the second half.
“If I had played David in the second half with that tactical setup, I would have put him in better conditions to perform. Because there was a bit more space at that moment.
“We managed to fit better into the opponents’ tactics and they didn’t have many chances to pin these poor guys of ours back under the ball. The game started to become different.
“David has those characteristics; he’s a player who doesn’t thrive on contact. When you fire the ball into him, it becomes a prison for him; if you give him a bad pass, it becomes even harder because that’s not his game. He’s more suited to clean play, a ball that’s set and thought out.”
Spalletti cherished Juventus team celebration
After the second goal, Thuram led his teammates to the touchline to celebrate with Spalletti on his birthday.
The Juventus manager revealed that he particularly enjoyed the hug with Thuram in his own special way.
“The hug there was intense because I wanted to sneak into Thuram’s hair — I wanted to experience the thrill of having a tuft myself again!
“They’re beautiful images. They make me feel completely at ease. Today, before the match, when they wished me happy birthday, I told them that I’m in the right place to celebrate it, in the right place, with the right friends.
“The only thing missing was the gift, which was seeing them celebrate under the Curva with the fans, and they did it.”
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