Thiago Motta was not surprised by Samuel Mbangula scoring on his shock debut as Juventus crushed Como 3-0, but outlined how Dusan Vlahovic and Kenan Yildiz combined upfront.
The Bianconeri had stuttered in pre-season and there were doubts as to what the real identity of this team would be under a very different coach to predecessor Max Allegri.
There were also eyebrows raised when 20-year-old Next Gen talent Samuel Mbangula was picked in the starting XI rather than massive investment Douglas Luiz, but it was the young winger who opened the scoring against Como.
Tim Weah added a second on the stroke of half-time from a Kenan Yildiz pull-back, Andrea Cambiaso sealed the 3-0 rout, while Vlahovic hit the woodwork twice and had a goal ruled offside.
“I had good sensations about Mbangula, I expect great things of everyone and not just him. He played today because he deserves it for all the work he’s done. I am happy for him and as a whole team we played very well,” Thiago Motta told DAZN.
He had been expected to start with a 4-1-4-1 formation, but it was closer to 4-2-3-1 with Khephren Thuram and Manuel Locatelli working in both phases.
“Humility is always needed. Dusan showed great humility to track back and help his midfield, the defenders communicated well. Como had a fantastic Serie B campaign and arrived with such enthusiasm, we faced them with the same respect as always. When we needed to defend, we did, and with the ball we had a lot of quality players who made smart decisions.”
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Kenan Yildiz was in a more central position to what was originally predicted too, rather than cutting in from the wing.
“Dusan had a great game, both with and without the ball. He is an important player for us. Kenan was against a Como side with positions we needed to make the most of, he has the characteristics to play that role and it left space for Samu to stay wide and feed the strikers,” continued Thiago Motta.
“Kenan played well there today, he has the characteristics to play in other positions too, it depends on how he is doing and the team we are up against.”
Weah scored the goal while limping heavily with a muscular problem that forced him off at half-time, so was it Thiago Motta who told the USMNT winger to get near the penalty area seeing as he couldn’t run?
“That was the great instinct of the player!” laughed the coach.
“He wasn’t in good shape, he almost walked into the box, because he sensed that was the position to be in. We’ll evaluate him tomorrow and hope it is nothing serious.”
There are reports this evening that Pierre Kalulu has accepted the move from Milan to Juventus, on loan with option to buy, so what other players does Thiago Motta need this summer?
“We need to recover from this game, start recharging the batteries and concentrate on Hellas Verona. We have no control over the transfer market, coach and players. The club is working to make a competitive squad, we can only have total concentration on the next match.
“Verona are a complicated team, they proved that in the first game.”