Juventus left the Allianz Stadium to whistles after Lazio’s 3-0 win, a result that has turned an uneven opening to the Serie A season into a more serious test for Luciano Spalletti. Serving a suspension in the stands following his sending-off after the 1-1 draw with Cagliari, the coach watched a side short of confidence and now sitting eighth, already eight points behind leaders Inter.
Key takeaways
- Juventus suffered their second league defeat in seven matches as Lazio won 3-0 in Turin.
- Spalletti was not on the touchline because of his dismissal after the previous match against Cagliari.
- The Bianconeri have 11 points, with three victories, and stand eighth in Serie A.
- Injuries to Manuel Locatelli, Kenan Yildiz, Khéphren Thuram, Arkadiusz Milik and Kamil Grabara have reduced Spalletti’s options.
- Antonio Conte’s name has returned to discussion around the club, having been out of work since leaving Napoli last season.
A difficult league rhythm despite European results
Spalletti was kept in charge after Juventus finished sixth last season and missed out on Champions League qualification. His contract was extended in April until 2028, but the latest home defeat has intensified scrutiny around a team still searching for a reliable identity.
The campaign began with narrow but useful wins over Frosinone, 1-0 away, and Parma, 2-0 at home. A 1-1 draw against Milan followed in Juventus’ first major examination of the season. Since then, their league form has lacked continuity: they lost 3-2 to Sassuolo in a chaotic added-time finish, responded with a 2-0 victory over Atalanta, then drew with Cagliari before Lazio’s emphatic win in Turin.
European competition has offered a more encouraging picture without resolving the domestic unease. Juventus opened their Europa League programme by beating NEC Nijmegen 5-0 and then won 2-1 at Celta Vigo on Thursday, with the decisive goal arriving late. Those results, however, have not carried into Serie A with sufficient consistency.
The absence of several important players has compounded the challenge. Captain Locatelli, Yildiz, Thuram, Milik and goalkeeper Grabara are all injured, leaving a squad already under pressure with fewer established reference points during this early stretch of the season.
Spalletti questions the response of his side
After the Lazio defeat, Spalletti offered a stark assessment of Juventus’ performance. “This was a Juventus team without tempo, ideas or speed, and without enough willingness,” he said. “There were many things in the attitude that I did not like.”
The coach also pointed to the fragility of the team once the match began to turn against them. “We were weak in our reactions after losing duels and when things went wrong. We need to change something, because I too was surprised by the level of the performance.”
Spalletti said he would examine his own relationship with the group rather than place the entire responsibility on the players. “My way of speaking with the team has always been based on sharing and building a good relationship. That has always been my approach, but now I have to reflect on it. The players themselves know that what we did today was not acceptable.”
With Inter already eight points clear after only seven rounds, Juventus cannot allow the gap to become the defining feature of their autumn. The club’s supporters made their frustration plain against Lazio, while Conte has been linked with a possible return to Turin. The former Juventus coach won three consecutive Serie A titles with the club in 2012, 2013 and 2014, and has been without a job since departing Napoli at the end of last season.
For Spalletti, the immediate task is less about the noise around the bench than restoring conviction on the pitch. Juventus have shown they can produce results in Europe and have already beaten Atalanta in the league, but their season will be shaped by whether they can turn isolated performances into a sequence worthy of the club’s ambitions.
