29 September 2015
Gianluigi Buffon has called for greater balance from his team when they take on Sevilla in their second Champions League match of 2015/16 on Wednesday night at Juventus Stadium.
After both sides won their opening Group D fixtures, the Bianconeri captain underlined the importance of tomorrow’s contest with victory putting either team in a commanding position to qualify for the knockout stages.
Meanwhile, a win would also allow Massimiliano Allegri’s men to turn the page after a start to the domestic season the Italy international admitted should have been stronger.
Speaking to media at the ground, he began: “Tomorrow we need a well-balanced Juventus, fully concentrated for the 90 minutes. We have an opportunity to have a big say in deciding affairs at the top of the group.
“We also know that a victory can erase recent form in an instant and so we’re very focused on securing the three points for several reasons.
“When you look at our team and the fact that players in key areas have departed then, yes, we need time to gel, but we still should have made a stronger start to the season.
“We’re the first to acknowledge that. But it’s no good dwelling on the past, we need to focus on the present, while also staying ambitious with regards to the future.”
Turning his attentions to Wednesday’s opponents, Buffon stressed that Unai Emery’s men would make for a good, hard-fought game, but was also quick to reinforce the Bianconeri’s own strengths, which were in full evidence in their 2-1 triumph at Etihad Stadium two weeks ago.
And the 37-year-old insisted that he and his team-mates had to find a higher level of consistency in their performances than those shown in a mixed beginning to the current campaign.
“I expect a difficult match, as Sevilla’s form in Europe would indicate. While they’re not firing on all cylinders at the moment in La Liga, they claimed a comprehensive win against Borussia Monchengladbach, even if that might have been a much more even affair.
“This year is similar to the last in that we’ve demonstrated that we can give any team a good game. We went to Manchester City, who hadn’t conceded yet this season, but we ended up putting in our best display of the campaign so far.
“This goes to show that the quality and potential are all there, but we need to find a way of adding consistency to our results. When you’re fortunate enough to play for a big club, the only problem lies in always being able to live up to the expectations.”
