Juventus coach Max Allegri admitted he should have brought on ‘more defensive players’ in the 1-1 draw with Milan and Italian media speculate if there’s an issue between the tactician and winger Federico Chiesa.
The Old Lady has lost seven points from leading situations in 2021-22 this season, as they have failed to win the opening first rounds for the first time in 60 years.
Allegri returned to the Bianconeri ahead of the new season, replacing Andrea Pirlo at the helm after a difficult season both domestically and in Europe.
After another game without a win, the coach stressed he made a mistake when he brought on Chiesa, Dejan Kulusevski and Moise Kean.
“I will admit that I made mistakes on the substitutions, I got it wrong,” Allegri told DAZN after the game. “I should’ve put more defensive players on and put the 1-0 lead under lock and key, so I take responsibility for that.”
The coach, who rushed into the dressing room after the full-time whistle, pointed at the last 15 minutes of the game.
La Gazzetta dello Sport highlight he was visibly unhappy when Chiesa chased Pierre Kalulu on the wing without profit and Wojciech Szczesny did well to stop the Milan full-back from scoring the winner.
“He entered in a difficult moment of the game, and I needed him to bring the ball to the opponent’s half,” Allegri said when asked about Chiesa.
“He must grow and become aware of what he can do, because we are at Juventus.”
With Chiesa and Kalulu in mind, other phrases by the coach highlight his thoughts after the draw against the Diavolo and the work rate of the attackers.
“Fortunately, the referee blew the final whistle, because we frankly risked defeat here. If you don’t realise that you must put all personal issues aside, work as a full-back even if you’re a striker, then you won’t bring these results home. All we’ll remember is that we threw away two points.”
The newspaper claims there might be trouble in the relationship between the coach and one of the biggest investments of Juventus in recent years.
Chiesa has shown his quality at Juventus and with Italy during the European Championship. But the tests keep coming and Allegri doesn’t seem convinced.