With Igor Tudor’s short-term tenure as interim head coach drawing to a close after the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup finals, rumors are rife about who will take over the reins.
So much depends on whether Tudor can clinch a coveted top four finish, which would earn a spot in Europe’s leading club competition.
Tudor, brought in as a quick-fix troubleshooter after Thiago Motta was axed in late March, has only collected three wins from his seven Serie A games.
A dozen points from a possible 21 does not make for happy reading. There’s huge pressure for Tudor to win the final two matches, when taking on mid-table Udinese and relegation-threatened Venezia.
Today’s home clash against out-of-form Udinese should be a breeze, despite numerous injuries and suspensions for the Bianconeri. The visitors are also missing pivotal players, which include their free-scoring skipper and two key forwards.
Home safety works wonders
Defeat seems unthinkable, with the Allianz Stadium in Turin having been a safe cauldron for Juve this term. Juventus have tasted just one home defeat this season, thumped 4-0 by Atalanta in early March.
With maximum points from the Udinese encounter, Juve will be only one win away from a top four finish. Although today’s results for AS Roma, Bologna and Lazio could mean that Juventus need only draw at Venezia on 25 May.
Venezia are fighting for their lives to avoid the drop. Empoli, Lecce, Parma and Venezia are all in the mix for the two other relegation berths and join rock bottom Monza in Serie B next term.
A real battle is expected at Stadio Pier Luigi Penzo next Sunday, which hosts soccer on water from the Venetian lagoon, with so much at stake at both ends of the Serie A table.
History could repeat itself
Tudor finds it tricky to register league wins in the Italian top tier as a manager. Last season he fluffed the opportunity to earn Lazio European soccer, because his side drew three of their final four games.
The Croatian, who played in defence for the Bianconeri and survived just one campaign as assistant manager at the club, was a cut-price choice to be interim manager.
With some dreary displays, his inability to produce eye-catching performances, and some unimpressive final scores then a change in the dugout appears imminent.
The four being lined up comprise Antonio Conte, Gian Piero Gasperini, Roberto Mancini, and ex-Barcelona boss Xavi.
Conte won three Serie A titles at Juventus as manager. He took charge of Napoli last summer, and they proudly sit top of the table. Even a Scudetto may not end his poor relationship with club president Aurelio De Laurentiis, so a reunion with the Turin titans is viable if he is willing to tear his contract up.
There’s virtually no chance that Conte will be enticed back without being given money to buy players. That is a moot point for the club, after Juve sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli was so weak with Motta’s transfer demands.
Back-up plan without riches
There’s also the factors about Juve needing an injection of money from being involved in the Champions League, which is why veteran Gasperini is a serious candidate. He has proved himself at Atalanta, and is seen as a safe pair of hands.
Ex-Italy boss Mancini was in the running to take over at Juve in March, only for Tudor to be chosen.
Conte may not be the only ex-Juventus hero to play a prominent role at the club for the 2025/26 campaign if Champions League soccer is secured.
The former defensive trio of Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini are rumored in the Italian sports press to be coaxed back.
Barzagli, Bonucci and Chiellini won endless trophies at Juventus, which marked an outstanding era when the Bianconeri scooped a staggering nine Serie A titles from 2012 to 2020.
Icons from glory days
If Conte returns to the club that he captained and managed, then familiar faces should be a big bonus. Barzagli could help coach the youth sector, while Bonucci would be ideal as part of the first team backroom staff.
With a likely summer reshuffle at the club off the pitch, Chiellini could be offered a more prominent role than his current job since last September as head of football institutional relations.
Bringing back old boys can work wonders at a leading soccer club, especially if planning for a seamless future. Yet the 2020/21 campaign under manager Andrea Pirlo and Tudor as his assistant ended up with the axe wielded.
Tudor has yet to deliver the goods in his latest stint, stuttering along while rivals have slipped up. Two triumphs should be within his grasp. Surely his goal will be to make a dignified exit this time, by steering Juve through the highly lucrative Club World Cup finals in June and July.