Spalletti: ‘Kenan Yildiz like Kvaratskhelia, Vlahovic causes his own trouble’

TURIN, ITALY - APRIL 19: Luciano Spalletti, Head Coach of Juventus, reacts prior to the Serie A match between Juventus FC and Bologna FC 1909 at Allianz Stadium on April 19, 2026 in Turin, Italy. (Photo by Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images)

Luciano Spalletti compares Kenan Yildiz to Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, ‘helped’ get the best out of Mohamed Salah, but identifies Dusan Vlahovic’s problem. ‘He causes his own trouble.’

The Juventus coach sat down for a lengthy interview with Tuttosport, and you can read some more of his comments here.

Spalletti has worked with so many talents in his career, including Kvaratskhelia before he became the Ballon d’Or contender at Paris Saint-Germain, or Salah at Roma on his way to becoming a Liverpool legend.

Spalletti record with top talent

“A coach must create a sense of ease, but what counts is getting the players together thinking the same way,” he told Tuttosport.

“We mustn’t just make a crude combination of individuals, but to pull something extra out of each of them. I feel like some of the players I made a real impact on were David Pizarro at Udinese, Stanislav Lobotka and Kvara at Napoli, Salah at Roma, and Joao Cancelo at Inter.

“Kvaratskhelia was coming from a different style of football and we helped him adapt. Salah, I should be clear, hands a Ballon d’Or to anyone who has the good fortune to coach him.

“I was convinced that Pizarro would have far more impact playing in front of the defence than his usual role as a trequartista, because you get 300 per cent more touches there. He could create spaces in a crowd and this is how David got to show his talent.

“When I arrived at Napoli, Lobotka had been practically forgotten, and I think he too had forgotten how good he was. Sometimes you just need to reassure a player that you have chosen him, to give him that confidence.”

Now the player under Spalletti’s guidance at Juventus who needs to be nurtured is Kenan Yildiz, even if the Turkiye international is currently out injured following knee surgery.

“Yildiz puts the chrome on top of football, he makes it shine,” continued the coach.

“His every move is ingenious and breaks the system, so when he starts, even he doesn’t necessarily have a plan of what he’ll do next. Sometimes in training I see the defender predict his movement, and still can’t stop him. He has the madness of invention.”

When it comes to players Spalletti has worked with before, Yildiz earns only the highest praise.

“For me, he is comparable to Kvaratskhelia. He needs to play a bit more, but I see similarities in the unpredictability, the way he stays outside of the rules and timing you expect in football. He’s a lovely guy, the boy next door type, but also a leader, one that doesn’t need to talk much.”

With all these players Spalletti was able to influence and develop, who does he feel regret that he didn’t fully understand?

“Adam Ounas at Napoli, without a doubt. As for Vlahovic, he still needs to find that personal balance within himself, because he causes his own trouble. Giving it too much gas is just as bad as not giving enough. It’s a question of balance, finding the right emotional temperature.”