01 March 2016
The Bianconeri may enter Wednesday’s Coppa Italia tie with Inter holding the advantage, having won 3-0 in the first leg of the semi-final in Turin, but Massimiliano Allegri has assured that his team will not be resting on their laurels at the San Siro, as they look to sew up a spot in the competition’s final in May and hold onto their cup crown.
Speaking to journalists in Vinovo, the Tuscan tactician began: “We’re taking a healthy lead into tomorrow’s match, but anything can happen over the course of 90 minutes of football.
“They’ll come out to attack us, so we’ll have to be ready for that. In my view, we need to score at least once in order to increase our chances of reaching the final.”
In terms of personnel for the clash in Milan, Allegri admitted that he would look to rest a few players who have featured a lot in recent weeks, stressing that those waiting in the wings were fit, ready and deserving of game time.
“Rugani is young, but developing well and it’s a good thing for him to get some more matches under his belt. Pereyra could feature, depending on which formation I adopt. Evra has been away the last two days due to a family issue. He’s due back tonight, so will stay in Vinovo tomorrow to resume training.
“Marchisio is working with the rest of the team today. Whether he plays or not, he’ll still be called up. Barzagli might be rested. Up front, I could go with the strike partnership of Morata and Zaza. Meanwhile, Neto gets the nod in goal.”
Asked for his verdict on the title race following Napoli’s 1-1 draw with Fiorentina, a result that sees the Partenopei sit three points behind the Bianconeri, Allegri underlined that the priority for his players was to keep collecting victories in the league themselves in order to close in on a fifth straight Serie A title.
“We played well on Sunday against Inter, but with 11 games to go, the season is far from over. Last night’s result in Florence clearly favoured us, but there are still 33 points to fight for and so we need to concentrate on increasing our own tally to one capable of winning the Scudetto.
“Our focus right now is on going to the San Siro tomorrow and sealing a place in the Coppa Italia final, then we’ll turn our attentions to Sunday’s league game with Atalanta.”
