On his Juventus debut in Cremona, Luciano Spalletti insisted on fielding a three-man backline, even though he had limited options in defence.
The Bianconeri went with a hybrid formation, with some viewing it as a 3-5-2, while others interpreted it as a 3-4-2-1, since Weston McKennie was playing in a more advanced role compared to fellow midfielders Manuel Locatelli and Khephren Thuram, while Loic Openda drifted towards the wing at times, leaving Dusan Vlahovic as the solitary centre-forward.
In any case, the fact that Spalletti was so keen to play with three defenders that he converted Teun Koopmeiners to a centre-back stole the headlines.
The new Juventus boss had to do without Gleison Bremer and Juan Cabal, who suffered fresh setbacks last month, plus Lloyd Kelly who’s struggling with back pain. Hence, Koopmeiners was the unlikely candidate who joined Pierre Kalulu and Federico Gatti in the three-man defence.
This decision somewhat paid off, with Juventus beating Cremonese by two goals to one.
But for a manager who spent the bulk of his career playing with four at the back, one might wonder why he decided to adopt this formation on his Juventus bow in the first place.
Luciano Spalletti (Photo by Marco M. Mantovani/Getty Images)
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport via JuventusNews24, this decision stemmed from Spalletti’s analyses of the squad at his disposal.
While his predecessors Thiago Motta and Igor Tudor were determined to implement their favourite formations, Spalletti has opted for a more pragmatic approach.
As the source explains, the 66-year-old noticed that if he chooses to adopt a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 system, he would be left with three strikers (Vlahovic, Openda and David) vying for one role.
Moreover, Spalletti feels that Juve’s wide options (Cambiaso, Kostic and Joao Mario) are more comfortable playing as wing-backs rather than full-backs.
With these factors in mind, Spalletti feels that a 3-5-2 system (or 3-4-1-2 when Kenan Yildiz returns) is the most convenient choice, at least amidst the current circumstances.
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