Juve sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli was weak when it came to transfers under Motta, with the likes of exiled Dean Huijsen and Moise Kean excelling once pushed out of the club.
Koni De Winter never got to be added to that list of outcasts under Motta, as Genoa already had a conditional obligation to purchase him after his season-long loan expired last summer.
It has now been a little over a month that the versatile defender has been touted to be making an incredible return to Juventus this summer, but has opportunities elsewhere.
Double history maker
De Winter became Juve’s youngest-ever starter in the Champions League, aged 19 years and 179 days in December 2021, and at the same time was the first-ever Belgian player in a senior Juve senior side.
He never played in the league for Juventus, but got his first taste of Serie A on a season-long loan at Empoli. Despite just 14 appearances during the 2022/23 campaign, he attracted attention from English and Italian outfits.
Genoa swooped in August 2023 to sign De Winter on loan, and picked him up for a bargain price of €10 million (US$11.15m) last July.
He played four games at right-back, before switching to center-back during a highly successful season comprising 29 Serie A appearances.
Talent pool overlooked
Allowing so many highly talented players to slip through the net means the club hierarchy should never allow that sort of scenario to be repeated, although Motta was not the only head coach to allow this to happen.
Giuntoli at least included resale clauses for those that were surplus to requirements under Max Allegri and Motta.
A 25% resale clause was included in the deal with Genoa for De Winter, who arrived at the Turin titans as a fresh-faced 16-year-old from Belgium side Zulte Waregem in 2018.
He has gone from strength to strength this term at Genoa, which resulted in serious interest from a clutch of clubs in England and Italy during the January transfer window.
In the money
With his asking price at Genoa anywhere between €25m-€35m (US$27.9m-US$39m), Juventus stand to receive either a quarter of that amount or save themselves over 25% of the transfer fee if they can entice him back.
Should De Winter opt to stay in the familiar territory of Serie A, where he seems comfortable, he has options with AC Milan, AS Roma, Juventus, Inter Milan and Napoli all keen to secure his signature.
A change of scenery to the Premier League also beckons, with a substantial salary increase an enticement. The five English clubs monitoring De Winter comprise Crystal Palace, Everton, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United.
Questionable managerial acumen
Should De Winter set Serie A alight with Juve's rivals for the Scudetto, then Juve will be kicking themselves for giving managers such carte blanche over transfer ins and outs.
The law of averages means that other players who have come through the Juventus Next Gen program should also prove the past two former Bianconeri head coaches very wrong over the next few seasons.
Albian Hajdari, who moved to Juventus U19 in 2020 but never made a senior appearance at the club, is another player who was overlooked by the Bianconeri. The Swiss defender is on the verge of a dream move from his native country to the Premier League.