Former Juventus defender Leonardo Bonucci has shared his thoughts on the club’s current struggles, following their humiliating 4-0 home defeat to Atalanta. Speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport’s podcast “La Tripletta,” Bonucci offered a candid assessment of the team’s performance and the future of coach Thiago Motta.
Bonucci didn’t mince words when describing his reaction to the match: “It broke my heart, I’m being honest. I saw a team in difficulty, apart from the first few minutes of the game. It was clear it wouldn’t be the match we all wanted to see. It was a difficult game to watch; I was with my children who were as desperate as I was. Today is a tough day for us Juventus fans.”
He added, “Conceding a goal from a penalty altered the match plans; at least before that, they were in the game. In those matches, you need to understand the moments. The enthusiasm and desire to recover lead you to open up, but then a team like Atalanta punishes you.”
Bonucci identified several areas where Juventus is falling short: “Today, there’s a lack of incisiveness. Thiago’s style of play is appealing, but in some matches, the team struggles to finish, and yesterday was one of those games. The players lack experience and personality; they need to grow.”
He emphasized the unique challenge of coaching Juventus: “Thiago Motta needs to learn that coaching Juve is a world apart. He needs to understand which pieces to improve to make all the knowledge he demonstrated at Bologna available to the team.”
Despite the disappointing results, Bonucci believes in giving Motta more time: “As a Juventus fan, I’m not happy with the results, but the project needs time. If you want to win immediately, you bring in Conte, create assets, and you’re set. Any other coach needs time for everything to fall into place, including at the management level.”
He added, “Motta’s project is very up and down today, but I believe Juventus should give him at least another year to create a group, a team, even at the management level, to try to create the conditions for winning.”
Bonucci criticized Motta’s post-match communication: “He’s on the hot seat now; he needs to take a step forward in management and also in communication. Last night, saying they were ‘sad’ and ‘sorry’ isn’t enough… You should be angry because we made a fool of ourselves!”
Despite the current struggles, Bonucci sees some positives: “Motta has allowed Juventus to dominate games in terms of play, and while this isn’t synonymous with winning, with the growth of two or three players bought this year and the addition of two or three more, you have the possibility to get back up there.”
He highlighted some promising young players: “Yildiz played few games last year; today, if you sell him for 80-90 million, you’ve created an asset. The same goes for Mbangula, Thuram… Di Gregorio is doing well. Not everything should be thrown away.”
Bonucci concluded with a message of cautious optimism: “If it’s a three-year project, we need time. I understand Juventus fans; I’m the first to get upset, but I have faith that next year could be positive with Thiago.”
