07 December 2018
Massimiliano Allegri lauded his team’s clinical streak as Juventus converted their best chance of the game to condemn Inter to a 1-0 defeat in the Derby d’Italia on Friday night. "We needed to be effective and clinical this evening," said the Juve boss, speaking after the game. "Inter caused us problems with their attacking midfielders, who we struggled with. We showed patience in getting the ball into their half in the first half, but only from the 30-minute mark onwards, while after the break we conceded very few chances. We were well organised and compact." Allegri also talked up the importance of the result over Inter. "We definitely couldn’t afford to lose," he said. "At the same time, we needed to produce a performance all about concentration and focus. It’s an important three points today because it means we’re one win closer to achieving our goal in the league." The Bianconeri coach went on to focus on a few individual performances. "[Joao] Cancelo did well on the left – he struggled with [Matteo] Politano because he was too tight in, but he’s improved on the defensive side of things," said Allegri. "[Paulo] Dybala played very well. I took him off because I needed Douglas [Costa] to carry the ball into the opposition half. [Mario] Mandzukic worked very hard for the team. His career speaks for itself – he’s always in games and he always uses his physicality well."
