Francisco Conceição Returns: Spalletti Faces Selection Dilemma at Juventus

Francisco Conceição is back. And with that, Luciano Spalletti’s selection puzzle at Juventus just became a lot more complicated.

The winger has returned to full training this week after separating his shoulder in Juve’s bruising 3-0 collapse against Lazio last month, a defeat that forced Spalletti into yet another rethink of his shape and personnel. Injuries have pushed him into constant tactical improvisation in recent weeks; Conceição’s absence was one of the key reasons the coach moved away from his familiar 4-2-3-1 variations.

Now the player he had quietly come to depend on is available again. The timing, though, is anything but straightforward.

Kolo Muani’s revival changes the picture

While Conceição has been recovering, Randal Kolo Muani has finally come to life.

Under pressure for much of the season, the Frenchman has produced his best spell of form just as Spalletti has shifted to a two-striker system. In that setup, Kolo Muani has been pushed into a wider attacking role, drifting into the very corridors of the pitch that Conceição usually calls home when Juve line up in a 4-2-3-1.

That raises the central question: if Kolo Muani is thriving there, where does Conceição fit?

Spalletti’s current shape leans heavily on the work rate and balance of his midfield. To restore Conceição as a wide starter, he would almost certainly have to sacrifice a midfielder and tilt the system back toward something closer to his earlier blueprint. That could give Juve more natural width and one-on-one threat, but it risks loosening the grip in central areas that has helped stabilize the side after a turbulent run of injuries and that Lazio defeat.

A selection headache before Venezia

So Spalletti walks into next weekend’s lunchtime kickoff against Venezia with a genuine dilemma, not just a welcome boost.

Does he ride Kolo Muani’s momentum and keep the Frenchman wide, effectively blocking Conceição’s route back into the XI? Or does he bet on the winger who, before his injury, had become a near-automatic pick in his preferred structure?

There is no easy compromise. Shunting Kolo Muani back into a more central role just as he has found rhythm on the flank risks undoing recent progress. Leaving Conceição on the bench sends a clear message that the hierarchy in the attacking positions has shifted while he was out.

And then, in the background, there is another name slipping further down the pecking order with every tactical tweak: Edon Zhegrova. If Conceição’s return already makes the puzzle tighter, Zhegrova’s chances of starting any time soon look slimmer than ever.

Spalletti has his winger back. Now he has to decide who pays the price.