Vlahovic set for injury lay-off, confirms Juventus boss Spalletti
Dusan Vlahovic sustained a muscular injury in Juventus' win over Cagliari and is now facing a spell on the sidelines.
Luciano Spalletti has confirmed that Dusan Vlahovic is set for a spell out of the Juventus team after sustaining an injury against Cagliari.
Vlahovic, who was Juve's leading scorer in Serie A heading into Saturday's game, with three goals, limped off after just 31 minutes and was visibly upset.
By that stage, Juve had levelled through Kenan Yildiz, who scored just a minute after Sebastiano Esposito put Cagliari ahead.
Yildiz completed the turnaround in first-half stoppage time, taking Juve onto 23 points in seventh place.
But they are now set to be without Vlahovic, with Spalletti telling reporters: "It is a strain and he will be out for some time.
Jonathan David came on to replace Vlahovic. The Canada international has struggled to find his best form since his switch from Lille.
However, despite David failing to have a shot, he did create two chances, and Spalletti was impressed by what he saw from the forward.
"I think David allowed us to get out there many times and he bonded very well with the team," Spalletti said.
"He's a technically clean player and knows how to handle the ball.
"There were several balls into the box that were always left in the middle, despite having numerical superiority at times. We didn't make the best choice. We didn't make the best choice many times."
Lois Openda has also found minutes hard to come by, though Spalletti feels this could now be the time for both the Belgium international and David to show their worth.
"There could be other solutions. David and Openda are central attackers," he said.
"David could potentially play as a second striker. Openda is a player who thrives on pace and runs into the box.
"David is more of a ball-carrier. They're both very good at scoring goals. They're both sensitive and good guys. I'm happy to hug them because that's what they need.
"They'd like to score two or three goals in a row to build their confidence and become more relaxed. But in football, you also have to earn it and succeed on your own.
"Everyone has doubts, and they're the ones who can clear them up."
