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Gianluca Minchiotti
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Juventus play with five defenders: the creative players get only 20 minutes, here's why

Juventus
L. Spalletti
Serie A

In Genoa, as in Lecce, Spalletti will again use a 3-5-2, which with minor adjustments can become a 3-4-2-1.

Juventus will line up in a 3-5-2 again tomorrow away to Genoa, as they did in Sunday's win at Lecce. Luciano Spalletti says "the players are serious and he would not be showing disrespect" by asking for a change of formation. Even taking him at his word, Spalletti, who has championed good attacking football for much of his managerial career, wants more defensive cover at this delicate stage of a delicate season.


For Juventus, "first and foremost, don't concede" is not quite the mantra. But the 0-3 defeat to Lazio is still too fresh to think of anything other than starting with five specialist defenders, who will in all likelihood be Gatti-Bremer-Lucumi in the centre, with Kalulu and Cambiaso on the flanks.

  • The small rotations

    How could Juventus change shape during a game? Spalletti used Kerim Alajbegovic to explain at his pre-match press conference: "How can the Bosnian fit into the rotation in a 3-5-2? That is a fair question, in the sense that the 3-5-2 is based partly on an assessment of the players, and of course it does not mean forgetting the make-up of our squad. We must not disadvantage those with different qualities, because all it takes is a very slight adjustment and it becomes a 3-4-2-1.Everyone can play in the two roles behind the striker. You can also do that with Kolo Muani, who can play in that half-space, as more of an attacking midfielder or more of a wide forward. Alajbegovic is one of those players".


  • The 20 minutes

    They can start one way and finish another, without sweeping changes (no back four, for example). Just small adjustments, or "very slight rotations", as Spalletti calls them. The substitutes will be crucial. Spalletti added: "It’s possible to change something up front. Especially when you consider the five substitutions. The 16 who will play are easy to identify; what matters is how the substitutes play their 20 minutes."


    At first, they'll keep things tight and take no risks. Late on, they'll look to make the difference with the technical quality of a bench that De Rossi's Genoa (De Rossi was Spalletti's "enforcer" at Roma) cannot afford.

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GEN

Serie A

28 Oct 2026

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