Juventus Test New Midfield while Italy Coach Visits

Juventus welcomed Luciano Spalletti at their training center on Wednesday for a high-intensity practice session that left some dings and bruises. Alex Sandro bowed out early sporting an icepack on his thigh and will probably have to miss some time, Sky informs.

Adrien Rabiot picked up a knock, but it shouldn’t be anything more than that. Dusan Vlahovic and Federico Chiesa were scheduled to work only in the gym. Hans Nicolussi Caviglia did the same due to an ankle sprain.

With the men he had at his disposal, Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri experimented with new solutions. Nicolò Fagioli was used as a deep-lying playmaker for the entire day, Calciomercato informs. He has had a slow start so far because he spent the summer rehabbing from a clavicle fracture. Fabio Miretti has seen the lion’s share of minutes over him.

Manuel Locatelli has been playing in the role for the majority of the recent seasons. Leandro Paredes was supposed to challenge him but didn’t pan out. Spalletti used him there also in the recent Euro qualifier. Instead, he fared admirably as a box-to-box before and during Euro 2020.

Our Take on Fagioli and the Juventus Midfield

Unless Allegri suddenly turns to Nicolussi Caviglia, which would have the right traits, it’s the only solution to get Locatelli out of the position and exploit his physical characteristics better. The trade-off is losing the youngster’s inventiveness in the final third, though.