Thiago Motta in the balance? The names of Igor Tudor and Roberto Mancini emerge for the Juventus bench

Bologna, 22 March 2025 – The break gives no respite to Thiago Motta, indeed. The Juventus coach is surrounded by rumours, and some give him close to replacement regardless of the result against Genoa when the championship resumes. The budget maneuvers, the quarterly report closes in March, would give Juventus a margin to act with a sensational change of coach on the fly, with the names of Igor Tudor and Roberto Mancini among the most inflated. Both, however, would like a clause on the next season and not to be simple ferrymen. In case of qualification for the Champions League, for example, the two could ask for an automatic renewal, removing the possibility for the club to act in June with another profile (Conte and Gasp the most sponsored in the Board of Directors).

Motta risks, Iuliano: "Igor would be the right man"

Days of great tension at Continassa between meetings, talks, analysis of the crisis. Elkann doesn't want to see any more bad figures (seven goals conceded in the last two) and on the other hand does not want to continue to inject capital increases into the balance sheets: it is necessary to straighten out the course, return to the Champions League and generate sustainable management. This is not happening, because the bad results limit the growth of the value of the player pool and a shake-up could give new life. In short, with the deadline for the quarterly report, Motta could be fired in April after the match with Genoa.

of the delicate situation Mark Iuliano, one of the former players who most represented the Bianconeri DNA, spoke at the Bianconeri: “We didn’t think we’d find Juve in these conditions – his words to Sky – We thought we’d start again with a great team, instead we’re talking about the possible dismissal of the coach. The club is called upon to make important choices because two seasons like this can’t be had”. Between rumours and discontent in the locker room, Juve is now a boat sailing in a storm: “There are players who aren’t happy and it seems obvious to me, then there have been too many rumours coming out of the locker room – Iuliano again – You can see an empty team, the youth project is good but it was a mistake not to immediately field certain players. Some haven’t been treated in the best way”. Recently, Del Piero spoke of a Juve that lacks reaction and criticized Motta's changes against Fiorentina, a match in which the coach brought on three defenders while trailing by three goals: "Alessandro is right, the analysis was brutal but correct. You can't bring on defenders when you're losing. The project isn't bearing fruit and Juve must always dominate the opponent, but we haven't seen this recently."

So the responsibility certainly lies with the players, but also with the coach, which evidently did not put them in the best conditions: "The players must be put in the conditions to do well and this is up to the coach", was Iuliano's response. So, we are talking about substitutes. Igor Tudor and Roberto Mancini are the two main candidates in case of immediate dismissal: “I have a lot of respect for Mancio, but I know Igor well and I think he is the right choice for Juve - Iuliano's thoughts - Motta's dismissal? You can't decide a season based on one match”. A surreal situation in some ways. Giuntoli confirmed Motta after Florence, but the option of immediate dismissal remains alive, in fact it increases every day. And since there is the quarterly budget deadline, April could become the right month to make more extreme decisions. Motta, therefore, could exit the scene even in the event of a victory against Genoa.