Fakayejo Paul
The executive floor at the Allianz Stadium is undergoing a massive, sudden restructuring. Following a highly tense and disappointing campaign that saw the club miss out on UEFA Champions League qualification, Exor chief John Elkann has pulled the trigger. Damien Comolli is officially out as Juventus CEO, with Sassuolo’s long-serving mastermind Giovanni Carnevali locked in to take immediate control of the Bianconeri rebuild.
An extraordinary board meeting has been finalized for today, Friday, June 12th, to formally ratify the structural changes and terminate Comolli’s contract after just one chaotic year in Turin.
The Breakdowns Behind the Sacking
While the failure to secure top-four financial revenues laid the groundwork for his exit, Italian reports confirm that Comolli’s relationship with manager Luciano Spalletti had broken down completely behind the scenes:
- The Alisson Collapse: The final straw for the hierarchy was a botched, late-season pursuit of Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker. Spalletti had personally invested significant time convincing the Brazilian star to move to Turin under explicit guarantees from the board, only for Comolli’s department to launch a clumsy, delayed bid without the necessary groundwork.
- The Market Friction: Trust evaporated entirely after a string of secondary transfer negotiations also stalled out. Spalletti publicly demanded more direct sporting control, forcing Exor to step in and back the manager over the executive branch.
- The Domino Effect: With Comolli’s departure formalized, the future of Technical Director François Modesto is also under extreme scrutiny, while club legend Giorgio Chiellini is tipped to take on a far more prominent, hands-on administrative role.
Why Carnevali is the Choice
By poaching the 65-year-old Carnevali from Sassuolo, where he has successfully served as chief executive since 2014, Juventus are installing an incredibly safe, highly respected pair of hands to stabilize the project:
- The Domestic Operator: Unlike Comolli’s highly analytical, data-driven international scouting lens, Carnevali is an expert in the inner workings of Italian football diplomacy, holding close professional ties with elite directors across Europe (including Inter’s Beppe Marotta).
- Budget Efficiency: Carnevali is universally praised for maintaining Sassuolo’s competitive Serie A edge for over a decade while generating immense capital gains through player sales.
- Immediate Mandate: His absolute primary objective will be working directly with Spalletti and Sporting Director Marco Ottolini to clean up a bloated wage bill, execute a 5-player upgrade cycle, and navigate a high-stakes summer market without Champions League revenues.
With Giovanni Carnevali officially arriving to steer the Juventus ship, does this front-office coup give Luciano Spalletti the absolute power he needs to guide the Bianconeri back to the Scudetto, or will a summer without Champions League money severely handicap their transfer ambitions?