Luciano Spalletti has likened Italy’s attempts to rebuild after Paolo Maldini’s departure to trying to update an old, worn-out mobile phone, saying the national team needed a complete change rather than a technical adjustment.
The Juventus manager was speaking after his side’s 2-0 friendly victory over Nice, secured by goals from Douglas Luiz and Justin Obuafodo. Juventus’ squad remains unfinished, with negotiations at an advanced stage for the potential arrivals of Randal Kolo Muani from Paris Saint-Germain and Kerim Alajbegovic from Bayer Leverkusen.
The possible signing of Bosnia and Herzegovina international Alajbegovic has prompted questions about how he would fit into a starting line-up that could also include Kenan Yıldız, Kolo Muani and Francisco Conceicao.
Spalletti said Juventus currently lacked both a focal-point striker capable of holding up the ball and a creative player able to supply him.
“We currently lack a centre-forward who can hold the ball and a playmaker who can provide it to him,” Spalletti told reporters in the mixed zone.
He described Kolo Muani as a versatile forward who could operate in several areas of the pitch.
“Kolo Muani is a completely complete striker. He can drop deeper and link up with the midfielders, attack space and play out wide as well,” he said. “I see Alajbegovic more as a playmaker behind the striker.”
That assessment suggests Yıldız could remain on the left wing, with Juventus potentially using a 4-2-3-1 formation. Alajbegovic is also capable of playing in wide positions, however, giving Spalletti several possible combinations if the transfer is completed.
Spalletti took charge of Juventus in October 2025, less than four months after being dismissed as Italy manager. The national side’s results declined following his departure, with Gennaro Gattuso and interim manager Silvio Baldini taking charge before Roberto Mancini returned this week.
Maldini had initially been expected to take the Italy manager’s position, but resigned after three weeks, opening the way for Claudio Ranieri.
Spalletti said Maldini’s appointment would have represented the kind of decisive change Italy needed.
“Maldini certainly represented something new, and that was exactly what we desperately needed,” he said.
“It was like trying to update the firmware on an old, worn-out phone, but it did not work at all. Instead of buying a new phone, we held on to the old one and did not update it.”
Asked whether Ranieri and Mancini were the right figures to restore Italy’s fortunes, Spalletti said he could not judge. He maintained that Maldini’s arrival would have signalled a more ambitious direction, while the subsequent decision represented a retreat.
“I cannot know that,” Spalletti said. “Maldini represented moving into fourth gear and flying along the road, but instead we went back to second gear.”
