Juventus have a troubled start to the Serie A season, with a 3-2 defeat at Sassuolo leaving the team with their second-worst league start in eight years. However, sporting director Frederic Massara has publicly backed Luciano Spalletti, insisting the club retains complete confidence in the coach. Massara spoke to Sky Sport Italia before the Europa League opener against NEC Nijmegen, with quotes via TuttoMercatoWeb.
Massara believes that the club's rebuilt squad, which features eight new players, is a reason for patience. "During the transfer window we did a lot of interesting things, always within certain limits imposed by UEFA, but we are satisfied with what was done," he said. The club is seventh for minutes played by new signings across the seven biggest European leagues, which Massara sees as a positive sign.
Massara also rejected the idea that new signing Nick Woltemade was brought in solely as a number nine. "We signed him because we consider him a strong striker like Kolo Muani, with whom he can be complementary," Massara explained. This suggests that Woltemade's role in the team is more complex than initially thought.
Spalletti's name is being raised alongside speculation over Antonio Conte's availability, but Massara's intervention suggests that the club is committed to giving Spalletti the time and support he needs to turn things around. The next step for Juventus will be to see how they perform in their Europa League opener against NEC Nijmegen.