The Bianconeri coach: “We don’t look at the standings, we have to regain serenity in order to reach our Champions League objective.”
Juventus suffered a home defeat against Udinese and, a few days after losing to Inter, probably waved goodbye to their title dreams: “This is a tough moment,” commented Allegri after the match, “It’s disappointing to get just one point in three games. We need to stay calm because we have an important goal to achieve, which is securing a Champions League spot. The past 15 days haven’t been great since the Empoli game, but that doesn’t take away from the extraordinary work we’ve done so far. These moments toughen you up.”
The team appeared less sharp than usual: “In the first half, we had several favorable situations against a well-defending team. Against Udinese, when you get the chance, you have to score, and we didn’t manage that. We created more on the left than the right, but there were few runs into the box. In the first half, we were patient and created chances, but we lacked penetration on the right. Udinese broke the deadlock from a set-piece, and then it got complicated, but let’s not forget they’re a team that doesn’t often lose.”
“Trying to keep up with Inter was a big motivation for us, but they’ve been built over years to win the title and are having an extraordinary season,” confirmed Allegri, “We have a different path, but our aim is to get back into the Champions League. Inzaghi is doing a great job, but there are values in football, and I don’t make things up. When we won nine titles, Juventus was the strongest team, and winning was normal. Inter is keeping an extraordinary pace, and they deserve only compliments. They played a Champions League final and have grown in confidence. I’ve always said that eventually, Milan would catch up with us, but we just need to stay calm and work.”
However, Juventus’ journey is one of technical and mental growth: “I’ve coached young players before, but they need to grow because they experience both extraordinary moments and difficult ones. It takes time; this team has excellent players with varying levels of experience. We could’ve done more against Inter, and the Udinese match was a setback, but it’s normal that everyone needs to step up. If we’re seven points behind with a game in hand, it’s because we deserve to be there, in fact, we need to be realistic and acknowledge we’ve done a bit more than expected.”
