Massimiliano Allegri met the press ahead of tomorrow evening’s match at Sassuolo. The game, which kicks off at 20h45 CEST, is the final fixture of Serie A Match Day 34. Before closing the press conference, the coach took time to wish former Juve goalkeeper Stefano Tacconi, who suffered a brain hemorrhage yesterday, a safe and speedy recovery.
SASSUOLO PRESENT
“Tomorrow’s match will be difficult because Sassuolo are a good, technical team, in a solid position in the table but they are coming off a defeat. Alessio Dionisi is doing a great job there. He has taken on intelligently from Roberto De Zerbi and has his team play simple, effective football, with quality. He, together with Vincenzo Italiano and Thiago Motta, is one of the young forward-thinking new generation of coaches in Italy that could in the future take over at the helm of the big clubs.
“To beat Juventus would be a prestigious result for them, so we will need to be good technically, otherwise we risk dropping points.”
SASSUOLO PAST
“My season as coach of Sassuolo was important for me, and I will always be grateful for the opportunity they gave me. I’m still close to those that were there in my time, especially the Squinzi family. Francesco Magnanelli is still there as is Giovanni Rossi, who is excellent at picking out talented players.”
TEAM CHECK
“Arthur won’t make it for Sassuolo, perhaps he’ll be ready for the Venezia game. As for Danilo, Denis Zakaria and Adrien Rabiot, I’ll have to assess their fitness in today’s training session, as I will also for those in contention in attack.
“Rabiot is coming on well. He’s getting closer to scoring each game. Perhaps tomorrow his moment will come. He’s still only 26, so he’s got time to improve even more.
“There is no problem for Matthijs De Ligt at 22 to continue playing game after game. I need to choose between Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci as to who will partner him.”
“Weston McKennie has started running, but he’s still a long way off being match fit. The same goes for Manuel Locatelli, who I don’t think will make it back before the end of the season.
BIANCONERI ACADEMY
“My compliments go to the Under 19 team for what they did by reaching the Youth League Final Four. They did well to come back from trailing by two goals. It’s a shame they missed out on the final on penalties.
“The Academy gives a sense of belonging, which is important. We are doing an excellent job with the young players, also with the Under 23 team that is playing in Lega Pro.”
SEASON’S OBJECTIVES
“Having reached the final of the Coppa Italia, we have a chance to play for a trophy, against the strongest team in Italy at the moment. As for the league, we need to take it one step at a time. We haven’t locked down fourth place yet, so we need to be aware because there are head-to-heads coming up.
“One important thing from the match against Fiorentina was that the substitutes that came on performed well. They contributed to the cause rather than lowering the level.
“The aim is to finish the season on a high, which is to finish in the top four and win the Cup.”