Carlos Tevez says Juventus will have to be on their game as they prepare to welcome tricky customer Sassuolo to Turin on Monday evening.
Despite the Bianconeri registering two wins and a draw in their three official league meetings with the Neroverdi, L’Apache believes Eusebio Di Francesco’s men will prove a tough nut to crack when the two face each other at Juventus Stadium in a couple of days’ time.
Speaking to SKY Italia, the 31-year-old began: “In recent times, games up against Sassuolo have been a challenge. They have come on leaps and bounds, and I’m expecting a tough match.”
Following last week’s draw against the Giallorossi in Rome, the Old Lady still find themselves with a somewhat healthy nine-point lead over Rudi Garcia’s men but Tevez feels he and his team-mates need to start closing games out earlier if they want to retain their Serie A crown at the end of the season.
“Our nine-point advantage over Roma doesn’t leave us much breathing space because we need to secure the title as soon as possible.
“We need to get a move on and close games out earlier, but I don’t think that it’s a difficult time for us. We’ve got three or four important matches coming up, and it’s vital we demonstrate character and win them all, starting with Sassuolo.”
Attentions will soon be turning to the Champions League and following a 2-1 last 16 first leg triumph over Borussia Dortmund in February, Juventus are in a good position to qualify for the quarter-finals as long as they avoid defeat against Jurgen Klopp's men in Germany later this month.
The Bianconeri's top scorer, however, was quick to acknowledge the magnitude of the upcoming European encounter but chose to treat it as just another match in the fixture calendar.
“It’s definitely the game of the season for our supporters. Of course it’s an important last 16 match-up but I believe we need to approach it with the mindset that it’s not a final and just another game.”
This last week also saw Tevez present former club Boca Juniors with a huge flag and the Argentine international rounded off his interview by revealing it’s something he’d love to do for the Juventus faithful at some point.
He concluded: “I’d like to gift our supporters one, because I think we’re missing a large flag at Juventus Stadium with the words ‘Fino alla Fine’ written on it.”