Juventus have reached back into their recent past to solve an immediate problem in goal, bringing Neto to Turin as Kamil Grabara begins his recovery from ligament surgery.
The decision
Neto, now 37 and available after his spell with Botafogo ended, has returned to Juventus nine years after leaving the club. His first stay ran from 2015 to 2017, when he served as Gianluigi Buffon’s deputy, including in the Champions League final in Cardiff on 3 June 2017. Juventus lost that match 4-1 to Real Madrid, with Cristiano Ronaldo among the scorers, while Neto remained on the bench.
His second Juventus chapter begins in a different role but with the same requirement for reliability. The Brazilian goalkeeper is set to become Guglielmo Vicario’s alternative after Grabara’s operation forced the club to act quickly.
Neto completed medical examinations at J Medical after arriving back in Turin. He is expected to sign a deal running until June before joining Luciano Spalletti’s squad for his first training session at Continassa.
There will be a direct change on the Serie A registration list, with Grabara making way for Neto. Juventus are also working through the requirements for a UEFA list alteration, and confidence is growing that clearance will arrive. If it does, Neto could replace Grabara not only in the league but also for the Europa League campaign.
The international break
Juventus are also awaiting a clearer assessment of Francisco Conceição after the winger left Portugal duty with a knee complaint. He suffered a contusion, played on for a period, and was then taken off by Portugal coach Jorge Jesus. The extent of the issue should become clearer in the coming hours.
There was a more encouraging note for Edon Zhegrova. The Kosovo player converted a penalty in his country’s 3-1 defeat to Austria, giving Juventus a positive individual return despite the result.
