Max Allegri insists the reasons Juventus continue to scrape late victories are down to ‘fitness levels and mental strength,’ but remains cagey on their Scudetto ambitions.
It was again left to the final minutes, but once more the pattern repeated itself with a narrow victory and a clean sheet, the eighth in a row in Serie A, beating Udinese 1-0 in Turin.
Federico Chiesa redirected a Leandro Paredes ball over the top with a chest and volley for Danilo’s tap-in at the back post.
“We are in a good period of form, but we must raise the bar in terms of performances. We didn’t have the right concentration against Cremonese, it was better with Udinese who are a strong side and we had more chances in the second half,” the coach told DAZN.
“We brought home the win late on because of good fitness levels and also mental strength. Technical skill is crucial, but if you don’t have that desire to give that little bit extra and get there a few centimetres before your opponent, you don’t win these games.”
Allegri was asked if Juventus should try to start their matches with a bit more intensity rather than wear opponents down until that sprint finish?
“We were a bit too hasty at times with our crosses and passes. In the second half, McKennie was in a more central midfield role and we put more pressure on, so he has different characteristics playing wide and we knew there could be difficulties, but that the game would improve as time wore on.
“Manuel Locatelli struggled a bit today coming off a draining experience in Cremona. Paredes can become an important player above all if he plays to send his teammates on goal, as he has such great vision and I think he needs to pick those passes more. He’s more than capable of it, so he needs to improve on those choices.”
Pending tomorrow’s results, Juve are now temporarily four points shy of leaders Napoli.
“We started slow and therefore have to keep working. This is an important win, because it consolidates our position in the top four.”
Allegri was visibly furious in stoppages and was booked for dissent as he was screaming at his players and the referee.
He also saw Angel Di Maria limp off with a calf issue after spending several minutes doing stretching exercises on the pitch.
“Di Maria played 60-70 minutes at a good level, he played well and I am happy with all the lads, who showed heart and hunger. Once we start playing every three days, we will need everyone in good shape and ready to play.”
The Bianconeri have kept 12 clean sheets in the opening 17 Serie A rounds, matching a record set by Cagliari in 1966-67 at this stage of the tournament.
Next week it is the big showdown with leaders Napoli, who suffered their first Serie A defeat of the season against Inter.
“Napoli are still clearly the favourites to win the Scudetto, they have a big advantage, whereas we want to consolidate the top four. We’re almost halfway through the season and are doing well.
“As I said, raising the bar means the performances rather than the results or targets. We have to take it one step at a time, focus on working and achieving the minimum objective, which is a top four finish.”