Juve washes the bench in the Arno. Mancini emerges for the post-Motta

Thiago Motta is almost condemned to dismissal, whether immediate or deferred, at the same time obliged to work on the Juventus today to save what can be saved, fourth place. A necessary objective, but no longer sufficient for its confirmation, now put at risk by the results of a month that, far from consolidating confidence in the initial project, has highlighted all its flaws, from the management of the squad to that of the dressing room.

The trip of Florence Sunday becomes a fundamental crossroads for the coach: a victory would allow him to continue on his path until the end of the season, otherwise the doors could open to immediate dismissal, also because after Fiorentina there is the break, the most suitable time to change. Giuntoli, through his emissaries, has already moved to sound out some coaches, but the Juventus management, in the event of Motta's dismissal, is uncertain about the profile: an interim coach to see out the season or a coach who can take the reins immediately and continue next season? Should the ferryman's option prevail, an internal solution would be able to plug the situation.

In this case, the hypothesis regarding Francis Magnanelli, Primavera coach, is the most likely, as the former Sassuolo captain has already worked with the first team last season, as Allegri's technical assistant. More remote are the options that would lead to two other coaches already under contract with the club, namely Massimo Brambilla, Next Gen coach, and Paolo Montero.

At that point we would start thinking about next summer, with the names of Gian Piero Gasperini e Antonio Conte always in contention, each with the need to discuss with the clubs that have them under contract to release them, even if Gasp has already made it known that he wants to leave Bergamo at the end of the season. In the background, more distant, Pioli and De Zerbi. If instead the path of the immediate start of a new era were to be chosen, the names are essentially two: the first is that of Igor Tudor, who however does not seem to have particular sponsors within the club, the second is that of Roberto Mancini, recently released by Saudi Arabia but ready to immediately release himself from his contract.

The former coach is a strong, experienced figure, tactically non-fundamentalist and with a winning past. However, he remains the coach who boasted the 2006 title with Inter, the one of Calciopoli, a wound still open for the fans, but realpolitik overcomes everything, and today Juventus can no longer afford to take leaps in the dark.