Juventus left Cagliari with a draw and a familiar sense of unfinished work. The tension around the result reflected more than one difficult afternoon: Luciano Spalletti is trying to shape a side already narrowed by injuries, while Inter appear to be moving with greater conviction in the early Scudetto picture. Juventus remain a team with useful individual resources, but their current path is uphill, and the margin for missteps will shrink as Serie A and the Europa League begin to demand more of the group.
The most immediate question concerns the attack. Randal Kolo Muani is not a conventional centre-forward who lives between the posts, and Spalletti has adjusted the front line around that characteristic. The Frenchman has been given licence to drift across the attacking areas, with Nico Gonzalez expected to arrive into central spaces from a deeper starting point. It is an idea with a clear rationale, yet it has not delivered consistently so far.
At Cagliari, Juventus found greater momentum only when Nick Woltemade was introduced alongside Kolo Muani. That intervention underlined the value of having a more obvious reference point in the box, even if the broader solution remains unsettled. Spalletti is also waiting for Ekhator to become available, another option he may need to use quickly in a period when his choices are limited.
A squad still learning to manage its moments
Juventus have not lacked players willing to take responsibility. Nico Gonzalez has offered that quality this season, while the same can be said of new arrivals Jhon Lucumi and Zeki Celik, as well as Pierre Kalulu, Bremer and Douglas Luiz. The issue is not the complete absence of character, but the team’s ability to impose it across an entire match. When the contest turns awkward or the rhythm changes, Juventus still look less settled than the sides already built to sustain a title challenge.
That lack of maturity in key phases remains one of the differences between Juventus and the strongest, most reliable teams in the division. Good performances have arrived, but they have not yet become a habit. Spalletti’s task is therefore as much about managing the emotional shape of games as finding the right combination on the pitch.
Douglas Luiz has become central to that project. The Brazilian has emerged as the driving force in Spalletti’s Juventus, but his quieter display in Cagliari also exposed a concern: too much of the team’s quality can depend on him. Teun Koopmeiners added physical presence after coming on late, yet Juventus did not gain the same improvement in their football.
The picture is increasingly clear. The first-choice side has potential, but the depth behind it is less convincing and some positions have little cover at all. With a crowded fixture list ahead, the strain is likely to become more visible. International players returning from commitments around the world add another complication when breaks end, particularly for a coach whose work on the training ground has already been restricted.
Spalletti has had only a small group at his disposal during the past two weeks, after allowing the first week of a three-week period to be used for rest, and he used almost none of those players in Cagliari. The consequence was a heavier workload for others at a moment when injuries have already reduced his options. Juventus now move into the next Serie A and Europa League appointments knowing that rotation will be difficult, recovery will be essential, and the room for error is already limited.
