The Old Lady conceded 35 goals in the Serie A last season under Thiago Motta and Igor Tudor. So far this season they have conceded 10 times. With the current trajectory the Bianconeri are set to concede exactly one goal per league game as well as fall short of Champions League qualification.
Spalletti's success with a 4-2-3-1 formation during two spells at AS Roma has since been adjusted to a 3-4-3 and a 3-5-2, as witnessed during his time as Italy boss. In between all of this it was largely his 4-3-3 tactical approach that helped Napoli land the 2022/23 Scudetto.
"Systems no longer exist in football"Luciano Spalletti
Despite being versatile throughout his career, Spalletti claimed in October 2022: "Systems no longer exist in football, it's all about the spaces left by the opposition."
This indicates to Juventus fans that his his new side will take advantage of the opposition's space left through individuals or a certain press. This means that defensively the team will adjust depending on who they tackle.
With Juve boasting versatile players, such as Teun Koopmeiners and Weston McKennie, Spalletti can set up different formations. It was a 3-4-3 approach in the Champions League against Sporting Lisbon with two wingers supporting marksman Dusan Vlahovic, a tweak from the 3-4-3 tactics where there was a more central focus at Cremonese.
Spalletti will ask a lot out of the midfielders to engage in a narrow press and win the ball centrally. This allows the biggest team in Turin to relieve the pressure from the defence. The midfielders will cut off passing lanes and go man to man to engage in a press.
This is similar, but more aggressive, to Igor Tudor's pressing tactics. The Bianconeri midfield will aim to cut passing lanes high up the pitch, in order to force the opposition to either go long to a striker or out of play. This aggressive midfield press allows his attackers to flourish, and takes the pressure off the defenders.
Spalletti stunned Italy when at Napoli
Spalletti has shown the whole of Italy that this tactical approach works, because his side conceded just 28 goals when Napoli won the Scudetto, at an average of 0.74 goals conceded per game. A much-needed improvement on the current one goal each match that Juventus defence has conceded this campaign.
Napol's successful season saw them win the ball an average of 6.2 times per game in the final third the term. This ranked them no1 in the league, 0.8 times more then second-placed Lecce and 1.3 times more per game than Inter Milan.
Juventus won the ball back 4.4 times per match that season. This dramatic turn from an aggressive man-to-man press to a structured aggressive press should be the way that Spalletti turns this underperforming Juventus side into title contenders.
Pierre Kalulu will play a key part of any future success for Spalletti. Despite interest elsewhere for the Frenchman, including his fantastic performances against Sporting Lisbon, he will be required to join the press and mark the striker man-to-man or engage in the further forward midfielder like he did in the Champions League.
Spalletti's appointment is seen as a dawn of change, having already built up a rapport with his squad, with the club only committing until the end of the season. There will be an option for Juve to extent his contract for the 2026/27 season, but the 66-year-old has to prove his worth this term first.