Juventus Prepares for Tough Test Against Inter in Perth

Luciano Spalletti didn’t bother dressing it up.

On the eve of a pre-season Derby d’Italia in Perth, the Juventus coach looked straight down the camera and called it as he sees it: Inter are still the benchmark.

“These are the sorts of games that help you understand a lot about the mentality of the team and whether or not we're working in the right direction,” he said, framing Saturday’s friendly as something far more serious than a jet-lagged exhibition.

Inter, in his eyes, remain the strongest side in Serie A. Juventus, even after a summer of change, are still chasing.

A Derby d’Italia on the other side of the world

Perth, 21.00 local time, 12.00 BST. A rivalry born in Turin and Milan is being staged on the other side of the planet, but Spalletti knows the context travels with it.

“Obviously, Inter are a very strong team like Chelsea,” he warned, a nod to the level Juve have been testing themselves against this summer. “We will need to be a team in every moment of the game because Inter will find advantages if we're not compact.”

That word – compact – has followed Spalletti through his career. Here, it doubles as both tactical demand and psychological test. Against the Scudetto holders, even in August, he wants to see how much of his Juventus has truly taken shape.

Yildiz to step up

One of the key questions concerned Kenan Yildiz, the player many Juventus supporters most want to see unleashed.

He played only a limited role against Chelsea in Hong Kong. That will change.

“He will play more than he did in the game against Chelsea,” Spalletti confirmed. The staff managed three or four players’ workloads in training, wary of the fatigue building up on this tour. “It's not easy to organise these sorts of events. They take extra effort and we'll have to discuss it over the next few days to see how we've recovered.

“I will see after the game tomorrow whether he will be a starter (in the league), but I think I will let him play for a half, or almost a half.”

It’s a small but telling window. A half of football against Inter, even in pre-season, is an audition. For Yildiz, it is a chance to convince his coach he belongs at the centre of Juve’s new attacking project when the real season starts.

Transfer talk: Circati and a crowded squad

The market, inevitably, found its way into the conversation. Juventus have been linked with Parma centre-back Alessandro Circati, a name that fits the club’s recent tilt towards younger profiles.

Spalletti acknowledged the defender’s qualities without opening the door.

“He's a promising young player who has shown a lot of great qualities and he could also be of interest to any club,” he said. Then came the cold reality. “But right now, we only have a couple of strong routes in our sights and those do not concern him. We can't create alternative situations at the moment because we have a very large squad.”

The message is clear: Juventus are not in a position to collect options for the sake of it. Any move now must be precise, not opportunistic.

Life after Vlahovic: goals by committee

If there is a real fault line in this Juventus, it lies up front. Dusan Vlahovic has gone. In his place, Randal Kolo Muani, Jeff Ekhator and Kerim Alajbegovic have arrived, three pieces trying to cover the absence of one headline name.

Is there a guaranteed 20-goal striker in that mix? Spalletti doesn’t seem bothered by the question.

“I think we've signed players who collectively will be able to exceed those numbers,” he replied. “It's not important to have somebody who scores 20 goals.”

He pointed instead to the calendar. Thursdays and Sundays. Europa League and Serie A. Constant rotation.

“This year, the season will be characterised by the fact that it will be played on Thursdays and Sundays, it will be difficult to always play with the same players. The Europa League engages you even more than the Champions League.”

That last line will raise eyebrows, but Spalletti’s logic is rooted in experience: long trips, awkward kick-off times, different types of opponents, and a competition where Italian clubs are expected to go deep. For that, he wants variety, not a single star to carry the weight.

“Even without a physical centre-forward, we have Ekhator who has a few of those characteristics, Kolo Muani commands the area. It's a bit of an open situation, but with the players we have available, with what we've done on the market, we'll be able to make up for it through everyone's collective work.

“Alajbegovic is somebody who can score goals. We want to help Kolo Muani's numbers. We're quite calm for the moment.”

Calm, but not complacent. The burden is shared now. If Juventus are to match Inter over a full season, they will need output from everywhere.

Bastoni, old wounds and a new tone

The last time Spalletti faced Inter, the narrative didn’t end with the final whistle. Alessandro Bastoni’s involvement in Pierre Kalulu’s wrongful sending off and the defender’s infamous celebration left a sour taste.

So, any lingering resentment?

“It will be simple, we will continue to do what we did after that game,” Spalletti said. No escalation, no public feud. “We didn't create any big aftermath, we didn't talk about the players' behaviour on the pitch. We just want to play a good game against the strongest side in our league and learn as many things as possible to get to their level.”

There it was again: Inter as the strongest, Juventus as the student. Not a surrender, but an honest assessment of the current hierarchy.

In Perth, under unfamiliar skies, Juventus will try to close that gap – even if only by a few small details, a few hard lessons, and perhaps a half of football from a young forward named Kenan Yildiz who has a chance to change the conversation.