08 May 2016
There was to be no late birthday gift on the field nor another three points to celebrate for Andrea Barzagli and his Juventus team-mates at Verona’s Stadio Bentegodi as the champions slipped to a rare 2-1 defeat on Sunday evening, their first in 27 league matches.
Barzagli, making his 150th Serie A appearance for the club, was naturally disappointed with the Bianconeri’s “sloppy” showing at the Stadio Bentegodi but believes that this setback will only serve to redouble his side’s focus ahead of the impending Coppa Italia final against Milan in two weeks’ time.
Looking back on the encounter in the company of the Jtv cameras the 35-year old commented, “We played sloppily today and our approach was wrong. Losing is never easy to take especially when you are as accustomed to winning as we are.
“That said, tonight’s loss may be good for us and give us a wake-up call ahead of the last two matches of the season; when you win the Scudetto with a handful of games to play, these lapses in concentration can always happen. We’ll put this behind us and make sure we train well and prepare as best we can for the Coppa Italia final.”
