Juventus Vs Benfica [2–0] – Champions League 2025/2026: Luciano Spalletti Second-Half Tweaks Secure A Crucial European Win – Tactical Analysis

Juventus met Benfica at the Allianz Stadium in Turin for a decisive UEFA Champions League fixture for I Bianconeri, since their qualification to the knockout rounds was directly linked to their success in this match.

Juventus succeeded in winning convincingly despite some errors and weaknesses that can be fixed over time.

The 2-0 win will surely boost the team’s performance and give them more confidence in their ability to deliver better results during what’s left of the season.

On the other hand, Benfica tried to disturb Juventus as much as possible and were extremely dangerous thanks to their out-of-possession work, especially their high pressing, which aimed to push Juventus into committing errors.

They were relatively successful in doing so, but lacked the quality to penalise Juventus for their errors.

Benfica will need to improve their attacking solutions, final passing, and finishing in order to exploit their effective high pressing and be able to beat teams like Juventus.

In this tactical analysis, we explore why Juventus suffered during the first half due to Benfica’s high pressing and why they were not as good as needed from an attacking perspective.

The analysis will also look at the tactical tweaks made by Luciano Spalletti during the second half and their impact on the team’s attacking performance.

Juventus Vs Benfica Lineups & Formations

Spalletti started the match in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Michele Di Gregorio as the goalkeeper and Lloyd Kelly and Bremer as centre-backs.

He used both Pierre Kalulu and Andrea Cambiaso as full-backs, with both Manuel Locatelli and Khéphren Thuram as central midfielders.

Up front, Juventus used Weston McKennie out of position as a right winger, Kenan Yıldız as a left winger, and Fabio Miretti as an advanced playmaker behind the striker Jonathan David, before subbing Francisco Conceição in the spot of McKennie and moving the latter as an advanced midfielder instead of Miretti.

On the other hand, José Mourinho started this match in the 4-2-3-1 formation, with Anatoliy Trubin as goalkeeper, Amar Dedić as right-back, Tomás Araújo and Nicolás Otamendi as centre-backs, and Samuel Dahl as left-back.

In midfield, Fredrik Aursnes and Leandro Barreiro were used as central midfielders, while both Andreas Schjelderup and Gianluca Prestianni played as wingers.

The attack also included Georgiy Sudakov as an advanced playmaker behind the striker Vangelis Pavlidis.

Juventus Dealing With High Pressure & Luciano Spalletti Tactical Tweaks

Juventus started the match with a clear ambition to attack and score early to secure a potential win, but they faced a very organised Benfica, high pressing that prevented them from building from the back with ease and made their attacks slower and more difficult to create.

It is also true that Juventus often succeeded in overcoming Benfica’s high pressing; however, they could have conceded goals on a number of occasions when they committed crucial mistakes in their own half, which enabled Benfica to make high recoveries and therefore counterattacks.

Fortunately for Juventus, their defenders were very disciplined and focused in this match, which allowed them to avoid conceding goals even during some of Benfica’s most dangerous counterattacks.

That said, going forward, passing inside Juventus’ half should be a key focus in training, as Spalletti needs to find urgent solutions to this problem to avoid conceding dangerous situations to opponents who press high throughout the match, such as Benfica.

Apart from enhancing the players’ passing quality and instructing them to pay more attention to their passing choices inside their own half, since this aspect is becoming crucial, switching the style of the build-up from the back to advancing from the flanks exclusively might prove to be a much safer option than advancing from the middle.

As teams tend to press with more players against opposing centre-backs and midfielders, opting for passes towards the full-backs and instructing both wingers to retreat and help in the build-up phase would reduce the number of high interceptions from opponents.

Juventus Build-Up From The Back Vs Benfica High Pressing

For instance, the following occasion highlights Juventus’ issues in dealing with Benfica’s high pressing and shows that Juventus can work further to avoid putting themselves in similar situations.

It is true that in this action, Cambiaso puts Locatelli in a delicate situation.

However, Locatelli should have dealt with the received pass with more calmness in order to avoid Benfica’s pressing efforts.

Retreating and using the space to his right would also have allowed him to consider his options without rushing or putting the receiver of his pass in danger.

Given Benfica’s concentration in the middle during this action, opting for a pass in an opposite direction would have been the right thing to do.

Providing a pass to Kalulu would have eliminated Benfica’s pressing and allowed Juventus to advance through the right wing instead of providing a risky pass to Bremer, who got surrounded by two opponents as soon as he received the pass.

Limiting such wrong passes in dangerous areas, especially against teams that press high continuously, will be essential for Juventus, especially during their UEFA Champions League journey, mainly because teams in that competition tend to rely heavily on high pressing and execute such plans with organisation and continuous determination.

Furthermore, the fact that Juventus are used to playing with a slower rhythm in Serie A and are subject to less dangerous high pressing in Serie A can be considered as a direct reason for committing those passing errors inside their own half when playing against European teams who play with a higher tempo, whether when out of possession or when in possession.

Juventus Ball Losses Inside Their Own Half

Juventus’ ball losses inside their own half were quite frequent, especially during the second half, when Benfica were losing and had to press high with even more frequency and determination to win the ball back.

During some of those occasions, Benfica tried to close down Yıldız with more than one player, in an attempt to steal the ball from him or force him into a wrong pass.

But since Yıldız is a creative player and an excellent dribbler, he found a way to dribble and pass to Thuram’s direction between two players.

However, Thuram’s attitude and movement without the ball in this situation were not as good as required, as he remained in the same position even when he saw Yıldız surrounded by opponents.

He could have quickly moved forward to facilitate the passing process for Yıldız and help him get out of that difficult situation.

The passive approach to this situation left Thuram unable to even catch Yıldız’s pass, as he did not move to meet it at the right spot, which led to a Benfica counterattack and a dangerous opportunity.

Continuous movement without the ball to provide passing options to the ball holder, especially from the midfield duo, is essential to enhance Juventus’ build-up from the back and limit opponents’ high recoveries per match.

Luciano Spalletti Efficient Second-Half Tactical Tweaks

Spalletti started the match in a 4-2-3-1, with a lineup that was not particularly successful from an attacking perspective, as the use of Miretti behind the striker in the first half was neither rewarding on the attack nor on defence.

Likewise, relying on McKennie as a right winger did not create the necessary threat or dribbling penetration on that side, as McKennie is known as a midfielder and does not have the ability to dribble past more than one player in tight spaces near the touchline.

Spalletti soon realised that to achieve greater balance and variety in the team’s attacking play, it would be essential to insert a proper right winger in place of McKennie and move the latter to an advanced playmaker behind the striker.

These changes were immediately rewarding as Yıldız was already creating a lot of threat on the left wing, and the introduction of Francisco Conceição made Juventus even more dangerous from both wings.

Furthermore, the second Juventus goal highlighted the importance of using McKennie as an advanced playmaker, as the American was crucial not only through his shooting but also through his active participation.

In other words, McKennie was well-positioned to receive the ball in a key area, as he was on the same line as David, acting as a second striker.

This allowed him to receive the ball and exchange passes with David to avoid marking and find a way through those defenders, ending up in a 1-v-1 situation with the goalkeeper.

The goal action highlights McKennie’s excellent movement without the ball and with the ball, especially when he plays in the middle of the pitch rather than on the wings.

Also, the goal action confirms that David is becoming much more useful in Juventus’ playmaking, as he was decisive thanks to his strong play with his back to the goal.

David played the role of a stationary striker effectively in this match, providing key passes to his teammates and not losing the ball easily, even when tightly marked or disturbed.

The exchange with McKennie proved David’s tactical maturity and his ability to provide through passes in space, even though he received a pass in a complicated situation and had to make a very quick decision.

Conclusion

Juventus secured a crucial victory against a tricky opponent, which counts for Spalletti and the players and will certainly give them a boost as they continue their European journey with more confidence and better performances.

It counts for Spalletti that he knew how to handle the events of the match and made the necessary tactical changes.

Juventus are looking better than in recent periods across all aspects, as their defensive organisation and performances have significantly improved, and their attacking performances have become much more efficient.

Continuing to improve the quality and performance of existing players will definitely help Juventus become a tougher team at both the European and local levels, with a need for greater focus on finding and applying solutions to opponents’ efficient high pressing.