Juventus have submitted their official Serie A squad list for the 2026-27 season — and the document confirms what the Europa League registration had already signalled: Khéphren Thuram and Arkadiusz Milik are both excluded from the 25-man squad for the domestic campaign. Edon Zhegrova, also absent from the UEFA list, does not appear either.
The Two Exclusions — and Why They Were Made
Thuram’s exclusion is entirely logical and comes as no surprise. He underwent knee surgery at the Hôpital Privé Jean Mermoz in Lyon on Wednesday, performed by Dr Bertrand Sonnery-Cottet. He will not return to action before January 2027 at the earliest, and his exclusion from both the Serie A and Europa League lists allows him to focus entirely on his rehabilitation with no match-related pressure or administrative complexity surrounding his status.
Milik’s situation is considerably more nuanced and the decision considerably more deliberate. The Polish striker had shown encouraging signs during the pre-season — scoring in one of the summer friendlies and appearing to have recovered meaningful physical condition after two years of persistent injury problems. Spalletti, however, made his choice: Milik is out. The reasoning is multifaceted. His injury history makes him a player difficult to rely upon consistently. His contract expires on 30 June 2027. And the arrival of Nick Woltemade from Newcastle has effectively eliminated whatever residual attacking role might have existed for him. With the squad’s UEFA Settlement Agreement constraints already having forced painful decisions elsewhere, keeping Milik active in the squad without a realistic role would have been operationally wasteful.
Can They Return to the List? What the Regulations Say
The question supporters will immediately ask is whether Thuram and Milik can be reintegrated into the Serie A squad list during the season — should Thuram recover from surgery ahead of schedule, or should Milik’s situation change through a contract resolution or improved form.
The Lega Serie A regulations provide a clear and relatively generous answer. Clubs may at any point in the season make the following changes to their 25-player list: replacing a goalkeeper with another goalkeeper; replacing a foreign player whose transfer has not been completed; replacing a player whose registration has been revoked; replacing a player with whom a mutual contract termination has been agreed; and — most relevantly — replacing up to two non-goalkeeper players on a single occasion during the season.
That final provision is the key one. Juventus have one opportunity to swap up to two players from their registered list during the 2026-27 campaign. Should Thuram return to fitness in January and warrant reintegration, or should Milik’s situation be resolved through a contract termination that creates a different administrative category, the club retains the regulatory flexibility to manage those situations. The door is not permanently closed. It is simply being managed carefully, in the manner that has come to define everything Carnevali, Massara, and Spalletti have done together this summer.
