Del Piero: Juventus ‘must’ have title belief, but avoids Yildiz comparison

Juventus legend Alessandro Del Piero feels the Bianconeri can still aim for the Serie A title, but plays down comparisons with Kenan Yildiz: ‘He has to build his own path.’

Juventus and Italy legend Del Piero feels the Old Lady can still hope to win the Scudetto in 2025-26.

Inter are currently the table leaders, while Milan sit second, just five points below the Nerazzurri. Del Piero, however, believes the race for the title won’t necessarily involve the Milanese sides only.

“I don’t think so. It’s undeniable, though, that the Rossoneri, along with Inter, are the teams with the best chances of challenging for the title,” he told Italian reporters via Calciomercato.com.

“After all, Milan are among those who have had the fewest setbacks, and they don’t have any European competition draining all their energy. However, there are other candidates.”

Juventus sit fourth, ten points below Inter and Del Piero says Luciano Spalletti’s men still have a chance to be involved in the race for the Scudetto.

“Why not? There’s a renewed sense of confidence in the environment,” said the ex-striker.

“The dressing room can and must start believing again. It’s true that their comeback began later than their rivals’, but who knows? You always have to aim as high as possible, and if the team were to put together four or five wins in a row, also considering the big match at San Siro against Inter, anything could still happen.”

Kenan Yildiz has become increasingly crucial in the Juventus squad since Spalletti was appointed at the end of October to replace Igor Tudor.

“I’ve always avoided comparisons. He’s growing and, match after match, he’s showing that he can take on responsibility in big games,” Del Piero said.

“He’s certainly improved a lot, and you can see that he’s committed, trying to take inspiration from more experienced teammates as well, just as I did when I was a kid, and critics tried to compare me to one champion or another. The truth is that, beyond ideas he’ll try to pick up, he has to build his own path, a unique one. He has to carve out his own space in the world.”

Juventus have qualified for the Champions League knock-out play-off, where they’ll meet Galatasaray.

“I think Juventus have a strong chance of advancing to the next round,” Del Piero concluded.

“The players are very focused on these two matches. However, given how the season started, I don’t believe they truly have the goal of reaching the final. Considering the initial difficulties, they need to take one step at a time.”