Andrea Pirlo outlines the Sassuolo dangers for his Juventus side, urges more ‘mental strength’ and insists Milan ‘remain the team to beat’ in Serie A.
It kicks off on Sunday at 19.45 GMT, click here for a match preview.
“I expect a difficult game, as Sassuolo are a very good team who have been playing together for several years now,” said Pirlo in his press conference.
Andrea Pirlo outlines the Sassuolo dangers for his Juventus side, urges more ‘mental strength’ and insists Milan ‘remain the team to beat’ in Serie A.
It kicks off on Sunday at 19.45 GMT, click here for a match preview.
“I expect a difficult game, as Sassuolo are a very good team who have been playing together for several years now,” said Pirlo in his press conference.
“They have an excellent coach in Roberto De Zerbi, we must above all be concentrated when they have the ball, because they’re very good at escaping the opposition press.”
Before he took the Juve job, Pirlo had named De Zerbi as one of the coaches he was studying, along with Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp.
“We’ve always had some great conversations about football, but there are many young coaches out there who are doing well.”
The Bianconeri are fresh from a 3-1 win away to Milan, which put them right back in the thick of the Scudetto race and as potential favourites.
“Whoever is top remains the team to beat,” insisted the coach. “We’ve won for nine years in a row and clearly there is pressure on us, but Milan are the team to beat because they are the leaders.
“It was an important victory, but if we don’t win tomorrow, then it will all have been for nothing. If we don’t get a result here, then what we did at San Siro will fall into the background.
“What I do want is for us to improve our mental strength. Too many times, we score a goal and then have a few minutes after that where our heads are in the clouds. I ask for more concentration, because those are important minutes to give a sense of consistency.”
The COVID-19 outbreak is spreading, as after Alex Sandro and Juan Cuadrado, now Matthijs de Ligt is positive too.
“Merih Demiral played a few more games than Giorgio Chiellini, so he’s more ready to step in and he should play tomorrow, but Giorgio is prepared to give us a hand.
“This is the situation not just for clubs, but for all citizens, so we keep going. This isn’t a problem.”
Alvaro Morata has been training separately after his injury and Pirlo warned at most he’ll be “on the bench tomorrow,” while Federico Chiesa has shaken off that knock to the hip.
“I am not surprised by Chiesa’s performances, as I knew his quality and that’s why we wanted him. He can still improve a great deal and is the prototype of a champion. His performance at San Siro should be a starting point for him.”