Luciano Spalletti wants to see a "strong reaction" from Juventus to their Champions League disappointment when they host Como in Serie A on Saturday.
Juventus had a 2-1 lead over Galatasaray in the first leg of their Champions League play-off tie on Tuesday, but were thrashed 5-2, and were not helped by a red card for Juan Cabal.
It leaves Juventus with work to do ahead of the second leg on Wednesday, but before that, they welcome high-flying Como to the Allianz Stadium.
Just four points separate the sides in the table, and Spalletti, who said Juventus “need to change our approach” after the loss to Galatasaray, highlighted the importance of getting a positive result.
"There are things you can say in a press conference and others you can't, this is one of those that can't be said," he said when asked about that comment in his press conference.
"The infamous three steps back were discussed in the meeting with the players and could be the ones to take the rebound, using them as a springboard to get a strong reaction. We'll see if that's the case.
"In these last few games, we've gotten a bit emotionally involved; we haven't been good at hiding our uncertainties, and that's when the opponent takes an advantage."
Goals from Mbangula, Weah and Cambiaso gave us victory in #JuveComo back in 2024 pic.twitter.com/mD6tL7LY1j
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) February 20, 2026
Juventus currently sit fifth in Serie A, just one point behind Roma in fourth, while Como are just one place behind their hosts.
Spalletti's side have slipped up in recent weeks in the league, drawing with Lazio and losing to Inter, though Como have also stalled, going winless in their last three (D2 L1).
Cesc Fabregas will be unable to call on playmaker Nico Paz, who is Como's top scorer and assister, due to suspension, but Spalletti does not believe their opponents will be any less dangerous in his absence.
"Como is a strong team, one that knows how to apply the teachings of their coach," he said.
"In my opinion, he's a strong coach with tremendous qualities to pass on to the team. I consider him one of the best coaches we have.
"In recent games, they've started playing with a 3-4-2-1, and beyond Paz, a top-level player, there's a strong team. There are pitfalls, but I'm equally convinced that our team can get back on track because they reached a level of play that we weren't able to maintain.
"My team has a lot of the 'good guy' but also the 'intelligent' one, and I want to rely on that."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Juventus – Kenan Yildiz
Kenan Yildiz is only one of five players in the current top five European leagues to boast at least 50 shots (72) and at least 50 chances created (50), alongside Bruno Fernandes (58+78), Michael Olise (66+55), Lamine Yamal (87+58) and Kylian Mbappe (109+53).
Como – Alvaro Morata
Only Moise Kean (-6.4) has registered a higher negative difference between goals scored and expected goals (xG) than Alvaro Morata (-3.8), who has scored zero goals from an xG of 3.8, in Serie A.
He will be desperate to break that duck against his former side, having 18 shots in total, with only six of those hitting the target.
Next stop: Torino! Another away day awaits pic.twitter.com/fptvLQHNfA
— Como1907 (@Como_1907) February 20, 2026
MATCH PREDICTION: JUVENTUS WIN
After going 23 games in a row without losing to Como, Juventus lost the return fixture early this season.
They could suffer two consecutive defeats against Como in the competition for only the second time in Serie A history, after a run of three defeats between November 1950 and January 1952.
However, Juventus have not lost a home Serie A game against Como since 1st April 1951 (0-3). Since then, the Bianconeri have recorded seven wins (D5), including their last meeting in August 2024 (3-0), and eight clean sheets – they have never conceded more than one goal per game.
Juve are unbeaten in their last 16 home Serie A matches (W11 D5). Their last defeat at the Allianz Stadium was a 0-4 loss against Atalanta on 9 March 2025. Only Napoli have a longer ongoing unbeaten home run in the Italian top-flight (23).
Como have collected 10 points (W3 D1 L0) in their last four away league matches – as many as they managed in their previous nine combined. Since the last round of December, only AC Milan (14) and Inter (15) have earned more points in away Serie A games than Como.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Juventus – 45.6%
Draw – 26.4%
Como – 28%