Massimilano Allegri has put his faith in Moise Kean to lead Juventus to victory in the Europa League semi-final second leg against Sevilla on Thursday night, claiming he ‘wouldn’t have chosen him if he wasn’t in good shape.’
The 23 year old made a seven-minute cameo appearance in Juve’s most recent Serie A clash with Cremonese on Sunday, but has only racked up 61 further minutes across all competitions since mid-March.
Despite missing several games through suspension and a recent muscular injury, Allegri, speaking before kick-off against Sevilla on Thursday evening, believes that Kean is ready to lead the line for Juve in one of their most important games of the season.
“I wouldn’t have chosen Kean if he wasn’t in good shape,” he told Sky Sport Italia. “He was out for a while, partly due to injuries and suspension, but he’s ready.”
The biggest surprise of Juve’s line-up was the inclusion of Samuel Iling-Junior on the left wing. The young Englishman has, however, impressed in his recent performances in a Bianconeri shirt.
Speaking of his decision to start the 19-year-old, Allegri said: “I had a doubt between Kostic and Iling, hopefully I got it right. We’ll tell from the result if I did!
‘It’s always wonderful to play a semi-final, we are 90 minutes away from Budapest, and know we’re strong and up against a great team. We’ll have to see if we manage it and get luck on our side too.”
The semi-final at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan kicks off at 20.00 UK time.