Juventus submitted their Europa League league-phase squad list to UEFA on Wednesday evening, and midfielder Khephren Thuram and winger Edon Zhegrova are among the notable absences. Daniele Rugani, Arek Milik and Jeff Ekhator round out the group of five players left off the roster, according to Yahoo Sports.
The circumstances behind the two headline omissions differ considerably. Thuram is out with a knee problem that has bothered him since the spring and is reportedly set to undergo surgery in the coming days, though that has not been officially confirmed by the club.
Zhegrova’s situation is murkier. He has dealt with fitness issues throughout his time in Turin, and his exclusion from the list comes with some smaller leagues still holding their transfer windows open, raising the possibility that he could still leave the Continassa before those markets close. Ekhator’s absence is more straightforward, with the striker facing a long-term injury layoff expected to run for the next couple of months.
Elsewhere on the list, Juan Cabal made the cut despite reportedly giving his approval for a Deadline Day move to Atalanta that ultimately never materialized. Kenan Yildiz features on List B rather than List A, a spot reserved for homegrown players born after 2005, which frees up a place elsewhere – though he remains unavailable until November after surgery on a broken bone in his left foot.
Every summer arrival aside from the injured Ekhator has been registered, giving Luciano Spalletti a squad built almost entirely from this transfer window’s business to work with when the league phase opens against NEC Nijmegen on Thursday, September 17. Thuram, Zhegrova, Rugani, Milik and Ekhator simply cannot be called upon in that phase, regardless of how their individual situations resolve.
Finishing high enough to avoid the play-off round – and the two extra fixtures that come with it – remains the priority, and Juventus will need their available options, including whichever role Cabal is handed, to deliver on that front. Zhegrova’s part in that picture, and at the club more broadly, is far from settled.
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