The Troubling Financial Missteps of Juventus: A Closer Look at Their Account Issues

“From Openda to the mystery of João Mario: Juventus, you spent €70 million for one goal and two assists.” This sharp headline from La Gazzetta dello Sport reflects a recent evaluation of the disappointing contributions from summer recruits. In the match against Torino on Saturday, new coach Luciano Spalletti opted to rely on Dusan Vlahovic, despite him revealing back issues in the press conference. Vlahovic had previously been anticipated to leave due to his contract situation. Consequently, Jonathan David and Lois Openda, two strikers expected to rejuvenate the team, remained on the bench.

Consider the addition of Edon Zhegrova and offensive fullback João Mario, bringing the total expenditure to €70 million. This has resulted in just one goal from Jonathan David in the opening Serie A match against Parma and two assists (one each from David and João Mario). Their lack of impact has raised questions about their roles in the team. Spalletti seems to show little confidence in them; while David played 57% of the time under Igor Tudor, he has now dropped to just 13% under the new coach. Openda, who hasn’t scored for club or country since April 11, is also seeing limited playtime. Zhegrova, expected to regain form, has only appeared for about twenty minutes in the last two matches.

New Signings Have Limited Playtime

The summer signings’ cost-benefit ratio is clearly under scrutiny. In Spalletti’s lineup against Torino, the team relied on earlier acquisitions from the Giuntoli era (Di Gregorio, Kalulu, Koopmeiners, Thuram, Conceiçao) and previous sporting director Federico Cherubini (Gatti, Locatelli, Cambiaso, Yildiz, Vlahovic), along with Paratici signings (Rugani and McKennie). None of the new faces (excluding purchases made after previous loans) have had significant playing time or impact.

Officially, Spalletti isn’t eliminating anyone as he assesses the squad in his early days. He has indicated plans to adjust his tactical setup from the current 3-4-2-1 formation to a 4-3-3 or a two-striker system, which may benefit David and Openda. However, they must also consider their futures, with rumors surfacing about a potential January exit for Jonathan David, who is one of the highest-paid players at Juventus.