Conceição was replaced by Nico Gonzalez at the 64th minute of the Celta Vigo match, the moment he reacted with punches to the bench, according to several outlets including Adnkronos and La Repubblica.
Conceição told Sky Sport he had not argued with anyone on Spalletti's staff and had only changed his shirt, returning after about three to four minutes, a timing Fanpage gives as two to four minutes.
Spalletti said Conceição would do better to be angry with himself, and that if he had something to say he would have to explain what he had done so the matter could be settled.
Kolo Muani scored at 90+2 to turn a 1-1 game into a 2-1 win over Celta Vigo, the club's second win in as many European matches according to Adnkronos.
Francisco Conceição was taken off at the 64th minute of Juventus's Europa League match at Celta Vigo on Thursday, 15 October, with Nico Gonzalez coming on in his place. Several outlets report that he struck the bench repeatedly with his fists as he left the pitch. He then had a heated exchange with a member of Spalletti's technical staff before heading straight for the dressing room. He returned to the bench a few minutes later and sat with his teammates to watch the end of the game.
After the match, Conceição told Sky Sport that he had not argued with anyone on the staff and had held no conversation with them. He described going into the dressing room only to change his shirt, then coming back out, and he said the truth needed to come out. Fanpage and La Repubblica also report him saying he had gone to the bathroom while away, and Fanpage quotes him putting the absence at two to four minutes. He said the more important subject was the second half and the three points his side had won.
Spalletti addressed the episode at the end of the game and said the winger would do better to direct his anger at himself.
“It is better for him to be angry with himself. Otherwise we will have to talk about it.”
The coach added that if Conceição had something to say, he would have to explain what he had done, and the two would settle it. Fanpage reports him saying his assistants had told him nothing had happened, while also giving the substitution as the 70th minute, a figure other outlets do not repeat.
Juventus were level at 1-1 when Conceição was replaced, and Kolo Muani scored a winner in the second minute of stoppage time, at 90+2, to complete the comeback. Adnkronos describes it as the club's second win in as many European matches. The forward had a below-par evening, and he had also been withdrawn at halftime in the previous league round at Cagliari after a weak first half. La Stampa notes that several second-line players struggled in the experimental side Spalletti picked for Vigo, and that Conceição was expected to be a reference point for them.
Juventus next face Lazio, and La Stampa considers it likely that Conceição will begin that match on the bench. Spalletti's comments were reported as coming ahead of a fixture about two days away, according to Fanpage. Outlets report that the winger's own remarks and the coach's warning will both be watched closely in the squad over the coming days.
Pollar is free and carries no ads in the text. Its members keep it going.
Support PollarFootball · Vigo
Francisco Conceição punched the bench and exchanged words with a member of Luciano Spalletti's technical staff after being replaced at the 64th minute of Juventus's 2-1 Europa League win at Celta Vigo. He later said he had only gone to the dressing room to change his shirt.
AI text based on reports by lastampa.it, SAPO, Fanpage and other publishers. Published .