Although the Champions League is still a long way off, Luciano Spalletti is highly regarded in Turin. Now the bosses of the Old Lady have extended his contract with the coach ahead of schedule.
Originally, Luciano Spalletti had signed a contract until the end of the season when he took over Juve in October 2025 – with the clause reported by many Italian media that he would only be automatically extended until June 30, 2028 if he qualified for the Champions League.
After recent results – the Bianconeri are now unbeaten in six competitive matches since their near-comeback in the play-offs of the top flight against Galatasaray (most recently a 2-0 win in Serie A against CFC Genoa) – the bosses have, however, decided to extend the contract early until 2028 (salary of between five and six million euros per year), as had already been suspected.
Although the Italian record champions, who have been waiting for their 37th Scudetto since 2020 after a dismal few years, are still far from qualifying for the Champions League – the minimum target and the last chance of success after the play-off and Coppa exit (0:3 in the quarter-finals at Atalanta Bergamo).
Spalletti still sees huge potential
Rather, Juve, Como, Roma and Atalanta themselves are vying for the last available ticket for the 2026/27 top flight behind the top three (Inter, Napoli, Milan).
The general consensus, however, is that former national team coach Spalletti has reached the team around former Schalke player Weston McKennie, defensive tower Bremer and figurehead Kenan Yildiz and has consistently improved it compared to his predecessor Igor Tudor. This path will now be continued together, despite the still uncertain CL issue: “We are of the opinion that stability and continuity are two essential pillars for future success,” CEO Damien Comolli is quoted as saying.
Spalletti himself, as the former Napoli mastermind recently emphasized, is still a long way from reaching his desired quality on the pitch: “Sometimes we all have to accept that we can’t call up our best form. After six or seven months here, I’m still not sure what’s going on.” Spalletti was alluding to the fluctuations of his protégés during the games.