Rafa Benitez has a lot of respect for Juventus” data-scaytid=”2″>Juventus, but insists Napoli “have faith in our own qualities” ahead of Sunday’s clash.
The two title contenders go head-to-head in Turin tomorrow evening at 19.45 GMT, click here for a match preview.
Rafa Benitez has a lot of respect for Juventus, but insists Napoli “have faith in our own qualities” ahead of Sunday’s clash.
The two title contenders go head-to-head in Turin tomorrow evening at 19.45 GMT, click here for a match preview.
“It’s not easy to play every three days, as we haven’t got much time to work in training,” said Benitez in his Press conference.
“I expect a strong performance tomorrow, as I want to see the minds and the hearts of my players. Juventus are very strong, which is why we need stamina and intensity as well as the desire to do well. We will try to stop them any way they can and hurt the Bianconeri.
“They have such strength in depth and Antonio Conte knows it, so they are the favourites for the Scudetto. Having said that, we must play in a relaxed and confident manner, as we have faith in our own qualities.”
Many of the teams that take on Juventus have adopted a ‘cage’ to block Andrea Pirlo from creating in midfield.
“We must focus on playing, then maybe you could keep a special eye on a player, but we certainly won’t man-mark him. Do we need the perfect performance? No, as a good one will be enough to get points off the Bianconeri.
“Gonzalo Higuain has recovered and can even play 90 minutes. We must show our character at the Juventus Stadium, just as we did against Marseille.
“Is this tie comparable to Real Madrid-Barcelona? No, for the passion of the fans I’d say it was more like the Madrid derby between Real and Atletico.”
On Friday Napoli officially signed Anthony Reveillere as a free agent during injuries for Juan Camilo Zuniga and Giandomenico Mesto.
“We had a meeting and among the players available at the moment was Reveillere. I knew the player and gave the all-clear to continue talks.
“He can give us a great deal and we have 15 days to get him back in shape. He has quality and can play on either flank.”