Juventus director Fabio Paratici seemed to move away slightly from Maurizio Sarri’s comments about the Champions League. “We have a competitive squad.”
The first leg of the Round of 16 with Olympique Lyonnais kicks off at 20.00 GMT.
Click here for the line-ups and LIVEBLOG.
Juventus director Fabio Paratici seemed to move away slightly from Maurizio Sarri’s comments about the Champions League. “We have a competitive squad.”
The first leg of the Round of 16 with Olympique Lyonnais kicks off at 20.00 GMT.
Click here for the line-ups and LIVEBLOG.
When Paratici arrived for his pre-match interview, he was asked about coach Sarri’s suggestion Juve do not have the resources to be considered favourites.
“There are teams who are built to win the Champions League, not just us. It’s a dream, but the truth is also that we have a competitive squad, we play to win every game and tournament, but other clubs have the same ideas,” Paratici told Sky Sport Italia.
“Cristiano Ronaldo is the best player of all time, so having him in our squad is certainly an advantage as well as an honour. Sometimes people forget that we have this extraordinary player in Italy and we ought to appreciate him more.”
Is Sarri focusing more on Serie A than ending the European drought that has run since 1996?
“There is concentration on every tournament we are in, from the coach, club and players. We play Serie A week by week, so there’s more attention and pressure on us to win there, especially as we are expected to win after eight consecutive titles,” continued the director.
“There are teams built to win the Champions League, we must not forget it is played over just seven games from here to the end, so every detail is important, including a little bit of luck.
“That doesn’t just mean luck with a goal, but also having players in good shape, avoiding injuries and suspensions on the precise day of the crunch match.
“It is our objective to try to win every match. We’ll aim for a ninth consecutive Scudetto and even the 10th, but it’s not just a statistic, it’s a huge achievement.
“As for the Champions League, we will try to win every game and that’s all we can do. That includes the Final, of course…”