[Observation] Juventus needs more "Tudore"

Sports Weekly All-Media Special Correspondent Xiao Wu

Tudore's loyalty was rewarded. On June 13, local time, Juventus Club officially announced that it would renew its contract with Croatian coach Tudore in 2027, with the option of renewal in 2028. In other words, if both parties fulfill this contract, Tudor will lead Juventus for more than three years, which shows the management's full trust in this former Juventus player.

"Entertainment, charm, Juventus spirit. Three simple words and three nouns perfectly interpret the performance of Igor Tudor in Juventus since the end of March, and also shows the style that the Croatian coach will continue to maintain in the future." This is the description of Juventus' official website in the renewal announcement, representing the portrait of Tudor in this club. However, many people have enthusiasm and charm, but not everyone has Juventus' spirit. This is the main reason why Tudor regained trust in a short period of time.

Tudor's real strength is loyalty and sacrifice. This is not the first time he has contributed to Juventus. He is a player once, as an assistant coach twice, and as a fire-fighting coach three times. When the club management called him, Tudor drove from Croatia without hesitation. This is a typical Eastern European footballer's style, decisive and determined, and he walked unswervingly. Perhaps in the autobiography published when Tudor was about to retire, this kind of story is too suitable for the opening.

Juventus' failures in the past season stem from utilitarianism, and Tudor's retention was precisely because of non-utilitarianism. Among the candidates for management to choose to replace Mota, Tudor is not even a popular one, but is one of the few that is feasible. Due to years of failed reconstruction, Juventus has no longer dared to make a promise to anyone and has no confidence in achieving results. So from the perspective of incentives, a non-guarantee clause linked to the promotion to the Champions League was set up in just a few months of contract. Even if Tudor leads the team to keep the top four, Juventus can complete the unilateral termination by paying a small amount of compensation. In the end, only Tudor can accept such conditions.

The performance of thrillingly saving the Champions League place in the last round of the league is not very successful, and Tudor is by no means the perfect candidate, but he is the most suitable at this point in time. Antonio Conte was interviewed recently and criticized the media for linking him with Juventus in a critical tone, as if choosing to return to Juventus was a mistake. It is precisely because of Conte's sudden change in attitude that Juventus' newly formed management began to rethink. At that time, there were not many famous coaches on the market. With the background that Serie A strongman was changing coaches, it became a trend to find his own celebrities. In a horizontal comparison, Tudor is the most experienced among these people: he has led the Serie A team alone, achieved phased success, and successfully completed the task of temporarily rescuing the field in the giants. Juventus finally found that Tudor is still the safest choice.

There is a proverb in Italy called "Nonc'èduesenzatre", which means "good things turn into three". When Juventus won three consecutive championships, this proverb was printed on the championship-winning shirt as a slogan, and it is also suitable for Tudor now. At the same time, this proverb also means that it will continue successfully. A non-guaranteed contract renewal is to maintain the qualification of the Champions League. Then actively extending Tudor's contract with automatic renewal until 2026 is also a good wish of "good things turn into three", at least a positive signal that the club wants stability.

In order to pursue short-term results, Juventus signed too many short contracts: Koencesan, Vega, and Muani. Some of them have returned to the original team, and some have repeatedly swung in being bought out and not being bought out as the situation changes. They still have to prove themselves in the Club World Cup today. They have never been "Juvenirs" in the past and don't know the future, but this short-term strategy cultivates more "mercenaries" than their own people. This is not a moral judgment on the players, but a decision made by Juventus's route.

Compared to them, Locatelli is obviously a person with Juventus spirit. How many times he has been criticized by the media and fans during the season, how many times he has taken responsibility for the team's failure, and was easily taken off by Mota on the captain's armband, but he never complained, but he just continued to sacrifice and pay for the team until he used his performance to help Juventus win and qualify for the Champions League. The captain's armband was fixed on Locatelli's arm and it was also a reward for his Juventus spirit, and the same was true for Tudor. Juventus' contract renewal with him should not be considered a compromise or self-deprecation. On the contrary, Juventus wants to revive, and there are not too many Juventus like Locatelli and Tudor, they just think there are too few.