Juventus saw their lingering Champions League hopes officially extinguished on a surreal final day, as a 2-1 derby win at Torino proved irrelevant amid dramatic results elsewhere. Early goals from Roma and Como meant the Bianconeri were mathematically out of the top four before the half-time whistle, consigning them to another season of Europa League football. The match itself was overshadowed by serious crowd trouble that delayed kick-off by an hour and forced Juventus supporters to leave the stadium.
The evening had begun in chaos when clashes between ultras outside the Olimpico Grande Torino left a 45-year-old Juventus fan hospitalized with a head injury, reportedly caused by a thrown glass bottle. The supporter was taken to surgery in a "code red" condition, though later reports indicated his life was not in danger. With visiting fans evacuated and a tense standoff between hardcore groups, the local authorities and Lega Serie A eventually pushed the start time to 21:45 — an hour later than the scheduled 20:45 — and ordered the match to be played behind closed doors for the away sector.
Even after the revised kick-off, the threat of a pitch invasion hung in the air. Juventus ultras, who had briefly returned to the stands, threatened to storm the field if the game went ahead, prompting stewards to form a thin and inadequate cordon. The stadium lights briefly went out as the players waited in the tunnel, underscoring the sense of disarray. Torino took the field in their match shirts, while Juventus players wore warm-up gear as they awaited a final safety decision.
When play finally commenced, both coaches — Roberto D’Aversa for the hosts and the under-pressure Luciano Spalletti for Juventus — had to navigate the psychological fallout. Spalletti was already dealing with selection headaches: Kenan Yildiz was ruled out with an injury, while defender Gleison Bremer served a suspension, forcing a reshuffle. Torino lined up in a 3-4-1-2 with Paleari in goal, Ismajli and Ebosse in the back three, and Simeone partnering Zapata up front; Juventus adopted a 4-2-3-1, with Perin deputising in goal, an improvised defence of Kalulu, Gatti, Kelly, and Cambiaso, and Vlahovic leading the line.
The Bianconeri struck first in the 23rd minute, Vlahovic finishing calmly with his right foot after a quick combination with Khephren Thuram. It was a moment of clinical quality that momentarily lifted the gloom, but the live standings told a different story. By that point, Roma had taken the lead against Verona through Malen — who scored on the rebound after missing a penalty — and Como were ahead at Cremona via Rodriguez. Simultaneously, Cagliari went in front at San Siro against Milan, complicating the Rossoneri’s hopes and moving Juventus ever further from the Champions League places.
Five minutes into the second half, Vlahovic doubled his tally, again assisted by Francisco Conceição on the counter, to make it 2-0. Yet any true celebration was muted, as updates from the other matches confirmed the worst: Roma and Como both extended their leads, rendering the Derby della Mole a dead rubber in terms of Champions League qualification. Midfielder Cesare Casadei’s 60th-minute header from an Obrador corner gave Torino a consolation goal, but the final 2-1 score line was a hollow success for the visitors.
For Spalletti, the outcome piles enormous pressure on his position. The former Napoli title-winner had spoken before the match of the derby’s importance and the consequences of failing to reach the Champions League, hinting that his future would be evaluated. "Missing out on Europe’s premier competition is a major blow for a club of Juventus’ stature and ambition," a source close to the club was quoted as saying, reflecting the financial and sporting damage of Europa League football for a third consecutive season.
The violence outside the stadium will inevitably prompt serious questions. Incidents between the two sets of ultras have a long history, and the decision to schedule this derby in the evening — rather than the afternoon, as has been preferred in recent years precisely for safety reasons — will be scrutinised. The police chief and club executives, including Juventus CEO Jean-Claude Comolli, were seen in urgent discussions before the delayed start. Comolli later gave televised interviews in which he addressed both the match and the day’s disturbing scenes, condemning the violence and expressing sympathy for the injured fan.
While Juventus licked their wounds, the final day provided a fairytale for Como, whose victory under Cesc Fàbregas secured an improbable Champions League berth and sent Cremonese down to Serie B. Roma hung on to complete a late-season surge, and Milan’s shock home defeat to Cagliari meant the seven-time European champions tumbled to sixth, a finish almost as disastrous as Juve’s own fifth place. The shifting fates summed up a chaotic season in which only a few points separated glory from disaster.
As the 2025-26 campaign draws to a close, Juventus must now confront the reality of another rebuilding summer without the lure of Champions League football. The sight of a subdued set of players trudging off after a derby win, while their rivals celebrated elsewhere, was a poignant image. The victory over Torino, achieved in surreal and hostile conditions, will be a footnote to a season defined by missed opportunities and off-field turmoil.
Based on reporting from Tuttosport.
