Luciano Spalletti's reign at Juventus has not got off to the best start, despite being unbeaten in all five games at the helm.
He picked up hard-fought victory in his inaugural match, defeating Cremonese 2-1, before three stalemates on the spin. Yet his latest result, the five-goal thriller at Norway giants Bodo/Glimt, turned out to be a masterstroke of tactical genius.
Rotating his squad for the trip to tackle opponents on artificial grass and in snowy conditions meant there were many fans and pundits questioning his starting XI for such an important clash.
Bodo/Glimt will conclude their domestic season at the weekend, with a shot at being crowned league champions, so there were tired legs against Juventus.
Dusan Vlahovic, Juve's top scorer every season since the Serbia striker joined from Fiorentina in January 2022, was an unused substitute at Bodo/Glimt. For the first time this season he was overshadowed by the scoring exploits of fellow forwards.
Lois Openda, the unorthodox Belgian international, was given the nod to start as he offers the most pace from Spalletti's trio of available center forwards. He had a reasonable game, opened his Juve account by bagging a 48th-minute goal, but was replaced by Jonathan David with quarter-of-an-hour remaining.
Juventus were second best during the first half in Norway. The three-man defense was constantly prised open, the midfield pressed but were outfought while Openda struggled as a lone target.
Spalletti, fuming with his usual animation throughout the first 45 minutes, found his troops lacking fight and they were fortunate to only trail 1-0 at the interval. The 66-year-old delivered a team talk for champions and made what turned out to be perfect switch by bringing on whizzy winger Kenan Yildiz for plucky Vasilije Adzic at half-time.
Turkish talent Yildiz cut through the opposition like a knife through butter, bamboozling the hosts, and had a hand in all three goals. Given a role with freedom worked like a trick. In recent games the 20-year-old was man marked out of contests, but Bodo/Glimt had not banked on his brilliance shining and paid the price.
Juve's American ace dazzles
Versatile Weston McKennie, omitted from the US squad during the recent international break, had worked closely with Spalletti on helping to set up goals. He was one of only a handful of Bianconeri players who played well at Fiorentina.
The American ace dazzled in Norway, rewarded for his persistence and creativity with a goal on the hour-mark. His input after the international break has lifted Juve, all thanks to Spalletti's tutelage.
After Juventus conceded a last-gasp penalty, which levelled matters with three minutes remaining, it appeared that Spalletti's tactical tweaks and rotation was a gamble that would not pay dividends.
Yet Canada international David, in typical goal poacher mode, became their hero by snatching the winner in the opening minute of added time.
Spalletti breathed a huge sign of relief on the touchline and was overjoyed at the final whistle, because it had been a risky game to play with a cluster of rotations.
David and Openda back in business
This triumph could finally kickstart his Juventus career as head coach, as he has managed to get misfiring striking duo David and Openda to net. David had not found the back of the net since scoring on his Serie A debut against Parma in August.
David, who arrived as a free agent in the summer, is a high earner at the Turin titans. The club have already decided that they would like to cash in on the 25-year-old in January. Juventus would entertain offers in the region of €45 million (US$52.1m).
Bayern Munich are monitoring David, Openda and Vlahovic. The German giants could make a summer swoop for at least one of Juve's attackers, although Vlahovic may be favored as his contract expires at the end of June.
There has been discussion of a potential swap deal involving David and AC Milan's Santiago Gimenez, although the Canadian's steep salary demands could prove to be a barrier. There's also been speculation about a part swap deal for David with Chelsea or Tottenham Hotspur.
If Spalletti can maintain the momentum at Juventus, and further tweak his tactics, then the fallen Italian giants can start to climb both the Champions League and Serie A tables.
Juventus have chance to win games
Juventus face a series of tough Serie A matches leading up to the new year, but at the weekend should make it back-to-back wins when struggling Cagliari visit Turin.
Navigating their way to the knockout stage of the Champions League still lies in the balance. Cyprus side Pafos stunned Paul Pogba's AS Monaco last night with an entertaining 2-2 stalemate. Juventus tackle both sides as well as Benfica in their final run-in, and should require at least four points from this trio of clashes.
Spalletti may have his forwards purring, with new-found confidence for both David and Openda, so could contemplate playing two upfront instead of one striker.
McKennie has been rejuvenated under his new boss, and should Yildiz be employed as a false no9 or a traditional no10 then the pair could support either David, Openda or Vlahovic as part of a three-pronged attack.
Spalletti needs to repeat Napoli formation
Maybe Spalletti will revert to his highly successful 4-3-3 formation at Napoli that swooped the Scudetto, when he built his team around a whizzy winger and physical presence of a center forward.
To shore up the shaky defense there is no doubt that he needs a flat back four instead of three players caught out too often.
Midfield is marshalled by skipper Manuel Locatelli, but the Bianconeri are already viewing adding some steel with a couple of priorities targets singled out plus renewed interest in Manchester City's Bernardo Silva.
While Spalletti is eyeing up a new face between the sticks, with AC Milan's Mike Maignan and Atalanta's Marco Carnesecchi as the main candidates to usurp Michele Di Gregorio as the no1 shotstopper.
A tactical tweak and a winter overhaul could get Juventus firing on all cylinders again, and propel up the table with Spalletti seen as genius if he makes them more ruthless in every department.