Nicolás González

only 17 outfield players were available for Juventus this game.

Nico Gonzalez and Celik joined Yildiz, Conceição, Locatelli, Thuram, Ekator and Grabara on the injury list.

They are absolutely decimated when it comes to injuries.

I think no other team has it as bad as they do.

Messi kept searching.

Messi's cross found Nicolas Gonzalez and Jordan Pickford pushed the header away with one hand.

Then Alexis, Mac Allister headed against the post.

Lautaro came off the bench with 10 minutes to go and England's lead was still standing.

So who is in that position? Well, nobody.

I mean, Nico Gonzalez is on the right wing.

Alai Begovic on the left.

Colomwani centrally.

I mean, Kalulu obviously put in a lot of minutes last season, but he had a full summer off.

So that might be something that that's all I can really attribute that to.

But yeah, you could say Nico Gonzalez as well as improved again.

Low bar.

Spalletti then changed the match through substitutions.

Randal Kolo Muani and Nico Gonzalez brought greater speed and directness to Juventus' attack.

Gleison Bremer and Yann Lukeba provided additional defensive security as the visitors attempted to control Celta's response.

The match became more open.

Nico Gonzalez came close with a curling attempt while Celta continued searching for another opportunity through their pressure and movement behind Juventus' defensive line.

Iago Aspas entered and attempted to give the home side greater creativity, but Celta could not convert their promising situations into a second goal.

That failure became decisive.

Mm.

Right? Or a Gonzalez- Mm ...

as a out and out striker.

Yep.

I mean, this guy, uh, y- do you wanna leave him in a position where the guy can get used to the position and give the best that he can, or you wanna...

Nico Gonzalez, you see him on the right, you see him on the left.

Everybody's been moving around without, uh, w- w- without being successful.

Zelek, okay, he's a good player, but he's never gonna make a cross from the left because he's a, he's a right-

[laughs]

No, come on.

He's dealing with, uh, Nico Gonzalez, Douglas Luiz.

These are all failed players on Juventus.

Like, he was not useless [laughs] out there by any stretch of the imagination.

And I think him and Nico also switched positions, like, midway through the first half.

Yeah.

So maybe-

He and Nico were swapping a lot

... maybe, Chucks, that's why it kinda looked like you weren't sure where he was playing, mostly because they, they flipped and all of a sudden-

And I think they did it, and I think they did it a couple of times.

They're like, "This is my position and I will be here." I'm like, "Guys, there's lots of other blades of grass you can go to.

Maldini struck a clean, decisive finish past Guglielmo Vicario, and following a brief pause for a VR confirmation, the goal was officially awarded.

Juventus attempted to assert themselves before the break through vertical attempts by Nicolás González and Francisco Conceição, but Cagliari's defensive line, anchored by veteran Yerry Mina and Juan Rodríguez, remained impenetrable throughout the opening 45 minutes.

Desperate for an offensive spark, the Juventus coaching staff executed tactical adjustments at the interval, introducing Karim Al-Ajjij Gavic and Edin Žegrova off the bench.

The substitutions completely altered the momentum of the contest as Juventus established overwhelming territorial control and set up a relentless siege around the Cagliari 18-yard box.