Kerim Alajbegović’s golden moment has been amplified further by his inclusion in the shortlist of 25 finalists for the Golden Boy — football’s most prestigious award for the best player in the world under the age of 21. The news arrives alongside the most significant public endorsement Spalletti has delivered for the teenager since his arrival: “He is someone who can truly surprise. We must manage to create a more familiar and calm context around him. That way he can grow more quickly. A strong relationship must be created between the squad and the potential of individual players.” It is a shift in framing that has not gone unnoticed: Alajbegović is no longer merely a directors’ coup — specifically Massara’s, who had known and pursued him for months and finally delivered him to the Continassa. He has become Spalletti’s own player, someone the manager has learned to understand in the full human dimension of the relationship.
The Dzeko Sceptre — and the Small Physical Alarm
The article’s most evocative metaphor captures what the Bosnia break meant for Alajbegović’s status within the national team: he has ideally collected the sceptre passed down by Edin Džeko, who recently retired from international football, marking the transition with a goal. A 19-year-old inheriting the leadership burden of the country’s most beloved footballer is the kind of narrative that belongs to a career still being written.
The physical note of caution must also be registered. Against Sweden, Alajbegović was forced off with discomfort that his manager Barbarez subsequently attributed to cramp. Two days later he trained with the squad, but was then left out of the squad for the Poland match as a precautionary measure given the volume of football he had played during the break. No serious concern has emerged from the Bosnian camp — the rest is described as management rather than injury — but the Juventus medical staff will conduct their own checks when he returns to the Continassa, as they would with any player who left the field before the final whistle.
Spalletti on Zhegrova — “Can Become a Top”
The second chapter — “Spalletti: ‘Zhegrova può diventare un top'” — completes the double portrait by addressing the Kosovar winger’s rising trajectory across the same international break. One goal and one assist for Kosovo, 81 competitive minutes in the draw with Austria, and a public declaration of love for Juventus that has been covered in this session — alongside Spalletti’s own quiet but pointed assessment: “If he only completes himself just a little more, you will see Zhegrova. He can become a top player.”
The paywalled content maps the specific dimensions of that completion that Spalletti has in mind: the defensive discipline, the consistency of application across the full 90 minutes, and the capacity to impose himself in matches that are not already going well for the team — the measure of a player who changes games rather than merely decorating them. The difference between 72 competitive minutes and full squad integration lies in those specific qualities. The manager believes they are present, waiting to emerge. The tour de force of October will provide the environment in which that emergence can be tested.
