Juventus coach Thiago Motta is apparently leaning towards a tactical tweak as evidenced by the starting lineup that took the field against Monza on Sunday night.
While the Bianoneri didn’t truly thrive in Brianza, they did just enough to secure a slim victory and return home all three points, thus putting an end to a run of four straight draws.
Nevertheless, the pre-match talk was dominated by Motta’s latest tactical change. While the 4-2-3-1 formation was still in place, a change in personnel didn’t go unnoticed.
The Italian Brazilian decided to give the returning Nico Gonzalez his first start for over two months, fielding him as an attacking midfielder behind Dusan Vlahovic, with Kenan Yildiz and Francisco Conceicao on the wings.
Thiago Motta on the touchline during Juventus vs Parma
Therefore, Teun Koopmeiners was moved into a deeper role in the middle of the park, teaming up with Manuel Locatelli in the double pivot.
So according to IlBianconero, this new system could impede the chances of Khephren Thuram could now find himself on the bench more often than not, at least if this new tweak were to be confirmed in the coming weeks.
While the Frenchman ended up playing for an entire half due to Koopmeiners’ injury, the source fears the 24-year-old is unlikely to break into the lineup with the Dutchman and Locatelli both considered undroppable.
Nevertheless, the report believes Motta could go back and forth between the two systems, which could leave an opening for Thuram. In other words, the manager could go with an ultra-attacking approach against the smaller clubs, but could be more cautious against bigger opposition, with the French midfielder returning to support the midfield.
In any case, next Sunday’s contest against Fiorentina should provide a significant indication on how Motta plans to move forward on this front.