Spalletti’s masterstroke of deploying Federico Gatti as an emergency centre-forward with Juventus trailing paid off in the most dramatic fashion: the defender headed home in the dying minutes to earn a 1-1 draw against Milan and preserve an unbeaten record that had been under serious threat. It was not a match that will be remembered for its attacking fluency — Conceição hit the post, Kolo Muani found space but not the finish — but the character shown after going behind, and the late equaliser that followed, provided Spalletti with genuine material for a press conference that covered the referee, the striker under pressure, Woltemade’s debut, and nine unavailable players.
“We Played a Good Match — You Don’t Ask for Permission”
On the overall performance: “The analysis is honest and correct — I underline it. This is the base on which to then build. We played a good match. I was hearing it said that they lost too many balls — that was because we tried to raise the pressing and the volume of the game. Our intentions were right. Then you have to improve the choices you make — and you must not ask for permission. You must go there and take what you want if you want to raise your sights.”
“I Am on Kolo Muani’s Wagon — and I Am Staying There. Even If the Whole Stadium Whistles”
The phrase of the night — and one that will accompany the Frenchman’s season — arrived on the subject of the striker who was whistled by the Allianz Stadium crowd during the match. Spalletti’s defence was absolute and unwavering. “I got on Kolo Muani’s wagon by going to choose him as our striker — and now I am staying on it. Not just this match. The next one too. Even if the whole stadium whistles until the final whistle, I stay on the wagon. And at the end of the season we will evaluate where this wagon has taken us.” He added that the space had been there for Kolo Muani — “it only needed the ball five centimetres higher and he would have taken it” — and confirmed the position unambiguously for the next fixture: “Kolo Muani plays the next match — you can put him in your team sheets.”
“Mariani Is One of Our Strongest Referees — De Winter’s Challenge Was Not a Foul. Orsato Will Take Away Your Music”
On the controversy of Milan’s goal — where De Winter appeared to make contact with Kolo Muani in the build-up — Spalletti was pointed but ultimately magnanimous, wrapping his displeasure in characteristically oblique language. “Mariani is one of the strongest referees we have — everyone says so. The line being maintained is the correct one. We adapt to what we find around the world. These are not fouls and it is right not to give them. Now this word ‘contact’ — they teach you it is nothing. Orsato will take away your music.” He immediately drew a line: “Everything is fine — I am not going to recriminate about these things. The goal — the team should have taken it home earlier.”
“We Had Nine Players Out — Alajbegovic Showed He Has Character for This Level”
The confirmation of nine unavailable players — seven injuries plus two fitness doubts — was delivered as context rather than excuse. The post-match attention on the substitutes was positive. “With five substitutions you can create something more, as Nico González did against Parma. Alajbegovic showed that he maintains the characteristics of a player with prospects and a future — given the pressure of this match. We are confident we can complete the discussion.”
On Woltemade, whose debut came off the bench: “He is someone with that physical structure — strong in the air. We can use him in those crossing situations. We have known him for two or three training sessions but he can give us something.” Crucially, he confirmed the two could play together: “Woltemade can play as the support striker. Kolo Muani can play wide. It is possible.”
“Amorim Is a Serious Person — He Said Things That Are Correct and Just”
Sérgio Amorim’s post-match assessment — that Juventus did not deserve to lose — received a warm and respectful response. “If he says that, he is a serious person who deserves respect. He said things that are correct and just. We tried to play with our faces open, as Milan did. We were good in certain situations — pressing them, recovering balls. We were not complete in following through on what we had created — we lost the ball again and put in doubt what we had carved out. But the match was played by both teams seriously and importantly. We need to grow — but this is the base.”
“Losing Would Have Penalised Our Work — We Stayed with the Same Face After Going Behind”
The most significant observation about the team’s character came in the assessment of what the draw actually represented. “Losing would have penalised the weekly work — and the morale you find would have been different. We are working in the right way but I expect more from the players in their way of doing and thinking. We have values in this squad, potential — and we can take further what we have done with timidity. We needed to be more daring and stronger in the head.” And then the line that captures what matters most: “I find a team that had the strength to continue — because they did not deserve to go behind. And when they went behind they stayed with the same face, the same identity, of continuing to the end as they had started. That is everything.”
