Massimiliano Allegri insists that Juventus‘ target is to earn a top-four finish while his players dream of winning the Scudetto, so the Italian tactician is happy to have ‘disagreements’ with the team.
Juventus are one point below Inter in the Serie A table after a 2-1 away win over Frosinone on Saturday.
Juventus’ victory was inspired by Kenan Yildiz’s first Serie A goal and Dusan Vlahovic. The Serbian found the net minutes after his introduction as a substitute in the second half.
“We played a good game, only Napoli had won here. There is a magical environment here. It wasn’t easy,” Allegri told DAZ, as quoted by Ilbianconero.
“The first half was excellent, but we had created a lot and scored only once, so it was normal that we would drop a little in the second half. I haven’t seen their goal yet, but I think we could have done more. The reaction was good anyway. I am happy for Yildiz, Dusan and the whole team. It’s an extraordinary group that never gives up.
“Yildiz is young and has enthusiasm, which is needed at these moments. He is wise for his age. I picked him when Chiesa got injured, he is Chiesa’s natural replacement.
“Iling did well when he was introduced. Weah has recovered, Nicolussi did well. We must continue like this.”
Allegri and Juventus directors keep repeating that this season’s target is to qualify for the Champions League, while almost all Juventus players insist they want to win the Scudetto this season.
“If we agree, it’s not fine; there must always be little disagreement,” joked Allegri.
“Now we have reached the 40-point mark and we can have a good Christmas. Let’s see how many points we’ll earn in games against Roma and Salernitana and how close we can get to a Champions League placement.”
Juventus are not involved in any European competition this season as they were banned for one season following financial irregularities.
Vlahovic started on the bench against Frosinone and admitted that accepting the coach’s decision had been difficult.
“He had played three good games, but he had been criticised, so he needed to self-soothe,” Allegri explained.
“He could give us great help in the final minutes. He knows he has to improve, especially at a mental level and he played well when he was introduced.”