Allegri: Focus on this as a game we have to win

Juventus take on Barcelona in the second leg of their Champions League quarterfinal at the Camp Nou on Wednesday. Before the game, manager Massimiliano Allegri spoke to the media about his approach.

“The perfect Juventus match is the one where we qualify. Tomorrow we need to be very clear-headed and sharp. There will be times we need to attack and times to defend.

“I don’t think Barcelona’s characteristics have changed. We need to have confidence and faith in our capabilities.”

On his possible lineup for the game -

“In the past I had midfielders of different characteristics, now I have attacking wingers like Juan Cuadrado and Mario Mandzukic, so the job of a Coach is to make the most of the characteristics of his players. Tomorrow is an important step for the final part of the season.”

Barca manager Luis Enrique said he felt his side needed five or six goals to move on to the next round -

“I know we have great respect for Barcelona, but this kind of game requires little thought and a lot of action. We must defend well and attack well, as in every game.

“Naturally Barcelona have three very dangerous forwards, so we need to take that into account, but no more than usual.”

Paulo Dybala is fit despite being taken off due to an ankle injury over the weekend -

“Dybala is fine, so is everyone, fortunately. As for the line-up, I think there will be few or no variations from the first leg. However, in tactical terms and when it comes to attitude, I might change something.

“This squad has grown a great deal in terms of confidence. Tomorrow we must not think about the three goals of the first leg, but focus on this as a game we have to win.”

How will Juve handle the noise at Camp Nou where Paris Saint-Germain’s completely collapsed -

“We need to put what happened in the first leg out of our minds. We consider this a one-off match and sharpness is fundamental, because we need the cool heads to read the game at various points.

“The important thing is that we are in the game for 95 minutes and play a strong game technically. The lads know what to do, it’s very simple. They need to defend well and attack well – full stop.”

Juve have come close to blowing first leg leads recently -

“We ran a big old risk at Napoli too, so never mind Inter… This is the proof that football is unpredictable. We have 95 minutes to earn our place in the semi-final.

“It is important to remember that qualification is sealed at the final whistle, not after 20 minutes or at half-time. Paris Saint-Germain thought it was done, and it wasn’t. We thought it was done against Napoli in the Coppa Italia semi-final and risked losing that too.”