On Friday afternoon in Vinovo, Massimiliano Allegri held his pre-match press conference looking ahead to Saturday night's sold out encounter vs Inter at the San Siro. Here's what the boss had to say:
DERBY DAY INTENSITY
"Tomorrow, we play a great game against Inter, the Derby d'Italia in a wonderful stadium against a team that has allowed only 23 goals and just 2 in the last 9 games. We must, therefore, play a great game and then there will be three more. Saturday and Sunday won’t decide the Scudetto because there is still plenty to play and in football we have seen things change many times.
"Now is a great time where we need to show every ounce of courage, freedom, enthusiasm and willpower. We must be ready for every ball and every tackle. The league is all to play for. On Sunday, we fouled our opponent eight times and suffered 18 fouls which is a negative figure for us. Tomorrow, we have to play the right way otherwise we won’t come out alive.
"It’s simple, the more we think about it, the worse we play. Tomorrow night at 20.45 the whistle will blow and we have a football game to play, that’s it…We must think about ourselves and try to win to achieve our seventh Scudetto rather than get tangled up in our own heads. I’m sure we will play a good match and play right until the end.
"The first match against Inter was different. For us, it was perhaps one of the best matches we’ve played regarding our intensity as they did not even have an opportunity. It will be a different game on Saturday because they have to win for the Champions League and we for the Scudetto."
TEAM NEWS
"Apart from Chiellini, Sturaro and De Sciglio, we have everyone available…Mandzukic is in good shape and will probably play."
READY TO FIGHT
"The fans have a right to voice themselves, they have lived a week of disappointment, but we are all doing our best to reach our goals. The team is there ready to fight and hit the targets…In the last six years, Juventus has won the Scudetto, but we must think about the future. The fans all love Juventus and will always express themselves in a great way, but football is like this: one day you're the best and the next day you’re not.
"There is nothing to do but work. We play football and tomorrow when the referee blows his whistle you can not think of the past. What's done is done, we have to think about tomorrow's match. Tomorrow, anything can happen and it is normal for Napoli to be enthusiastic, but chances change in a moment.
"If we play with enthusiasm and clear heads, it is probable that we will win the Scudetto. If we bring in negativity, it could be different. Many championships have been decided on the last day, and when I talked about the calendar I said that it would be decided on May 20. We have to work."