Massimiliano Allegri is happy with Juventus‘ win over Salernitana but feels the Bianconeri are ‘vulnerable defensively’ and insists VAR is ‘subjective’ so he won’t complain about Inter‘s winner against Hellas Verona.
The Bianconeri completed a comeback against Salernitana on Sunday, securing a 2-1 win at the Stadio Arechi on Sunday.
Juventus are just two points below leaders Inter, but Allegri insisted Juventus’ main target is to qualify for the Champions League this season.
“It’s about being realistic. Inter are having a great season and winning in Salerno was important to keep the fifth-placed team away,” the Tuscan tactician told DAZN.
“A 15-point lead means a five-game margin, which is important. We play in Coppa Italia again mid-week, so we must recover and think about the next game.
“Right now, we feel well physically. We are more serene in difficult moments too. We played a good game in the first half. Salernitana played well defensively. Overall, we played a good game despite going 1-0 down,” continued Allegri.
However, there was one thing that didn’t please the 56-year-old.
“The thing that is not okay, and the lads know it, is that we conceded in similar ways tonight and against Frosinone and we conceded after 40 seconds in Coppa Italia.
“These are signals that are not good. Defensively, the perception is that we risk conceding every time the opponents throw the ball close to the box. We are not as confident as we used to be. With calm, we’ll work on these things because we can’t risk conceding goals out of nowhere.
“We attack in a better way, but we have worsened defensively.
“It’s an important victory and the lads are working well, but we must also look at what has worsened. There are moments where I feel the team is vulnerable and these moments must be cancelled.”
Juventus’ rivals Inter beat Hellas Verona on Saturday but the visitors were furious as they felt Davide Frattesi’s winner should have been disallowed for an Alessandro Bastoni foul in the build-up.
However, Allegri refused to protest.
“I’ve always said that VAR is a subjective thing. So we must accept it,” he said.
“It’s important not to think that it’s an objective thing. It’s not tennis where the ball goes in or out. A foul is different. It makes no sense to argue. There is a commission who decides on what referees do. Our duty is to earn as many points as possible.”
Juventus return to the pitch in the Coppa Italia quarter-finals on Thursday, January 11, while their next Serie A game is at home against Sassuolo on Tuesday, January 16.