Capello Criticises Vlahovic Treatment | OneFootball

Former Juve player and manager Fabio Capello has criticised Thiago Motta for his failure to introduce top scorer Dusan Vlahovic earlier in the European tie against Club Brugge.

A disappointing stalemate against Club Brugge was enough for Juventus to qualify for the Champions League knockout stage in the first season following its overhaul.

Despite this, bookmakers still have Juventus as outsiders to lift the trophy with odds of between 40/1 and 73/1. However, as Ciaran McEneaney explains, there are a lot of Champions League betting markets to choose from, including handicap, or player markets so all is not lost for Juve fans. The betting sites from Cardplayer.com offer a great selection to explore.

Vlahovic currently sits in joint eleventh place in the goalscoring charts with 4 goals in his 6 appearances. He would have to hit some real form to catch Lewandowski who leads the way with 9 goals, but his 12 goals across all competitions this season sees him as Juve’s top scorer.

It is this fact that has annoyed Capello who believes Vlahovic should have been introduced earlier than the 76th minute in the drab goalless draw against the Belgians.

Capello spent 6 years at the club during his playing days between 1970 and 1976, returning to manage the club between 2004 and 2006 where he won the Scudetti before the titles were stripped.

Capello’s support will come as a surprise to many following his recent criticism of the Serbian striker. In December, Capello criticised his attitude after being substituted against Monza. He showed his frustration on the bench and Capello was quick to state that he thought it lacked respect for his coach and fellow players.

More recently, he questioned Vlahovic’s technique and questioned how well he could contribute outside the box. He went on to recommend the signing of Joshua Zirkzee from Manchester United who had a successful spell in Italy at Bologna.

While these comments raised some eyebrows, the former Italy Boss has a point about Vlahovic’s style of play and that he might have been more effective against Brugge.

The recent signing of Randal Kolo Muani on loan from Paris Saint-Germain could see Vlahovic’s game-time cut even more. Despite scoring 53 goals since signing from Fiorentina in 2022, Capello doesn’t believe that Motta fancies Vlahovic as his main striker.

Links to AC Milan and Arsenal have been persistent, and his market value has stayed at around the £66 m the club paid for him. Recouping some of that fee could help Juventus invest across the squad, and if Capello’s suggestion of Zirkzee gains traction, it is likely they could work out a cut-price deal on the £35 million Manchester United paid for the forward who has struggled to settle.

If the loan deal for Kolo Muani is successful, it is likely that a similarly priced deal around the £30 million mark could be agreed.

Juventus’ lack of firepower this season sees Timothy Weah as the second top scorer with 5 and Kenan Yildiz in third place with 4. As the club sits 13 points adrift of top-placed Napoli in Serie A, a change is likely to come sooner rather than later.