Andrea Cambiaso’s start to the 2026-27 season has been, in the most compressed possible way, a study in accumulating misfortune. The Italian international full-back, who had arrived at the Allianz Stadium this summer as one of Spalletti’s most trusted attacking options, has already lost his starting place to the newly arrived Zeki Çelik — and on Saturday evening against Parma he added an injury scare to that narrative, lasting only a handful of minutes after coming on as a substitute before signalling to the bench that he needed to come off.
What Happened on the Pitch
Cambiaso entered the match expecting to make an impact on the flank. Within minutes, however, he felt a problem in his foot — pointing to his boot area and immediately communicating to the bench staff that he could not continue. After an initial assessment from Juventus’s medical team on the touchline, the decision was taken without hesitation: he was withdrawn and walked directly towards the dressing rooms for further evaluation.
The nature of the problem has not been confirmed. Spalletti, when asked about it in his post-match press conference, simply deferred the conversation: “Medical assessments tomorrow morning.” It is the kind of response that neither reassures nor alarms — but it confirms that full clarity on the extent of any injury will only emerge with Sunday’s formal examination.
A Season That Has Begun in the Worst Possible Way
Beyond the immediate medical picture, the broader context of Cambiaso’s opening weeks is one of the summer’s more painful individual stories. Throughout the transfer window, the Italian was on the market — linked with Chelsea and Barcelona, admired by multiple top European clubs, available at the €40 million that Carnevali and Massara identified as the right price. No concrete offer arrived. He stayed. And now, having remained at the club partly because no exit materialised on terms that suited everyone, he finds himself competing for a position he no longer holds — with Çelik’s impact making the challenge considerably harder — and facing the anxiety of an injury whose severity is not yet known.
Spalletti will conduct his morning medical assessment and the extent of the problem will become clearer before the day is out. On the final day of the transfer window, with a cascade of injury concerns already reshaping the squad’s resources, it is the kind of news the club simply did not need.
