Before Juventus' Europa League match against Stade Rennais at the Allianz Juventus Stadium in Turin, director Giovanni Carnevali reiterated the club's support for coach Luciano Spalletti. Juventus were coming off a 3-0 home defeat to Lazio, but they were top of the Europa League table after a 5-0 win over NEC Nijmegen and a 2-1 away victory over Celta Vigo.
Build-up to the match
The game was scheduled for 17.45 UK time, 18.45 CEST. Carnevali told Sky Sport Italia: "I think the important thing is consistency, because we alternated some good games with clearly negative performances."
He also said: "We want the maximum concentration and everything required to find consistency with those results we already had in the Europa League."
Bremer reproached after comments
Carnevali said Juventus had spoken to the players and reproached Bremer over his remarks. He said: "We talked to the players and reproached Bremer, because what he said was not right, he too spoke to the squad and cleared the air. It is natural for us to work with and support the coach."
Support for Spalletti
Asked if the club still had full faith in Spalletti, Carnevali said: "We must try to rebuild, so there have been some mistakes made in recent years not just on a sporting level, but an economic one too."
He added: "We find ourselves in a situation over the summer with a settlement agreement and Financial Fair Play limitations that blocked us from making certain moves. We need to rebuild, have clear ideas, and not just constantly chop and change, otherwise we’ll continually have to start from scratch."
Carnevali also said: "I’ve been here for four months, I try to bring my ideas, so I don’t believe it is right to change every time there are some difficulties."
He said: "The coach is still the same, he knows that we need to work. It’s true, the jersey weighs, the bench is a high-pressure situation, but that’s part of being at a big club like Juve."
Club situation
Carnevali said: "The Juventus jersey weighs on players, it is not easy for many especially young players, so we must try to help them, support them, and give joy to these fans, but also realise it takes time. We mustn’t be hasty."
He added: "Maybe other clubs don’t have this situation, but after two negative games here the media immediately starts calling for changes. We all know what we need to do, that there are some issues that have to be analysed, and we are doing that."
Carnevali also said: "I want to reiterate that lack of consistency is what has taken us into this situation, both on the field and above all off it with Financial Fair Play limitations, which is a big problem. We have to acknowledge and live with it, we mustn’t hide behind anything."
Football Italia reported that Juventus were set to switch to a 3-5-2 formation, with Nick Woltemade and Randal Kolo Muani starting together upfront. Football Italia also reported that Weston McKennie should get a free role behind the forwards.