Juventus changes and similarities as Tudor prepares for debut after Motta sacking | OneFootball

Dusan Vlahovic is expected to start for Juventus in Igor Tudor’s debut against Genoa, while Manuel Locatelli will remain the captain and could even start in defence.

Juventus are preparing for Tudor’s debut on the Juventus bench as the Bianconeri host Genoa at the Allianz Stadium on Saturday.

The biggest line-up change is believed to be in attack, with Vlahovic starting the game.

The Juventus leading scorer has only played 455 minutes in 2025 under Thiago Motta. The ex-Juventus boss often picked January signing Randal Kolo Muani over the Serbia international, who only started four times in the new year, twice when his French teammate was unavailable.

Juventus changes and similarities as Tudor prepares for debut after Motta sacking

epa11919581 Juventus�s Dusan Vlahovic celebrates after scoring the 0-1 goal during the Italian Serie A soccer match Cagliari Calcio against Juventus FC, in Cagliari, Italy, 23 February 2025. EPA-EFE/FABIO MURRU

Vlahovic seems highly motivated to get a fresh start under Tudor, as he was one of the Juventus players returning to the training ground ahead of schedule after the international break.

Tudor praised Vlahovic during his unveiling press conference on Thursday and had previously said the Serbian was the best striker in Serie A.

It’s still unclear whether Tudor will use a three-man defence, which he has deployed in recent years, including a successful three-month spell at Lazio last season.

Ilbianconero.com suggests that Locatelli could be one of the three central defenders against Genoa, even if Federico Gatti, Pierre Kalulu and Renato Veiga also have solid chances of getting the nod at the back.

However, Locatelli will surely be the Juventus captain, while Teun Koopmeiners may start on the bench, making room for Kenan Yildiz and Kolo Muani behind Vlahovic in attack.

Generally, both Tudor and Motta love counter-pressing and aim to recover the ball high up the pitch. However, the Croatian tactician prefers vertical passes and quick counter-attacks to a build-up with extreme ball possession.

The ex-Juventus defender took charge of his first training session on Monday but could rely on the full team only later in the week, when all players returned from international duty.

Juventus will be without the injured Gleison Bremer, Juan Cabal, Arkadiusz Milik, Douglas Luiz and Andrea Cambiaso for Tudor’s debut against Genoa tomorrow.