Why the Juventus squad is not happy with Thiago Motta | OneFootball

Juventus are currently out of the Serie A top four and there are now grumbles of discontent around Thiago Motta.

La Gazzetta dello Sport today have shed some light on the bad relationship between the Juve boss and some members of the squad. They detail instances that have led to him essentially losing the locker room.

The first incident they mention involves Dusan Vlahovic. They state that when the striker gave an interview to the Serbian press during November’s international break and mentioned that he has less defensive duties for the country, Motta asked him for answers. Despite that, he started games and Motta asked for a better attitude. After he didn’t see that, the striker was benched during the Supercoppa Italiana.

After the game against Atalanta, Vlahovic ‘exploded’ in the dressing room and was benched for Fiorentina. The second instance involves Federico Gatti, who was handed the captain’s armband earlier in the season. Later, it was taken away from him and was passed around till Manuel Locatelli was handed it quite recently. This hasn’t gone down well with the squad.

The next example is that of Andrea Cambiaso, who missed the Champions League game against Manchester City despite Motta wanting him to play. The full-back wanted more time and this didn’t go down well with the Bianconeri boss, who has had a good relationship with him since their time at Bologna.

Douglas Luiz’s relationship with Motta has also broken down, as the manager tried to be harsh with the Brazilian to bring more out of him. But this led to the player not being happy with how he was treated.

His compatriot Danilo was also treated in a slightly similar way, as he was excluded from the squad and since he has quite a bit of influence in the side, Motta lost the trust of many players. Motta’s relationship with Nicolo Fagioli also never quite took off, despite his impressive showing against RB Leipzig. Things grew cold and he left for Fiorentina, scoring against Motta’s Juve at the weekend.

Along the same lines, Motta’s constant change in personnel hasn’t gone down well in the dressing room. Goalkeeper Mattia Perin is also not happy as he was shifted as a back-up, despite being given the assurance that he could be a first-choice and this had led him to reject other offers.

Most prominently, something is also not well with Kenan Yildiz, who had a stomach infection before the Atalanta game. Despite that, Motta plays him and something broke after that game, with the player having been on the bench against Fiorentina.

This doesn’t look good for Motta and it seems as if the entirety of Italian media is being briefed against the manager.

Kaustubh Pandey I GIFN