Allegri: Tomorrow is fundamental, Scudetto is going to be decided

Juventus lead the Serie A by eight points with six games to go, and manager Massimiliano Allegri believes that a win this weekend will go a long way towards securing a historic sixth consecutive Scudetto.

Speaking ahead of tomorrow’s game against Genoa, Allegri started off by talking about Juve’s Champions League semi final opponents, AS Monaco.

“I would not have preferred Real Madrid in the draw. Monaco reached the semi-final and to achieve that they clearly have quality. They have young talents, maybe not the history of Juventus, but it certainly won’t be easy for us to reach the Final.

“The objective is to reach the Final in Cardiff and win the Champions League, but we can only think about that after the Serie A game with Atalanta.

“Tomorrow we play in Serie A and getting three points against Genoa would give us an important cushion at the top, basically allowing us to get two games wrong.

“From Friday onwards, we’ll be playing every three days, so the points tomorrow are fundamental. The Scudetto is going to be decided.”

The manager was commended for his tactical nous in blanking Barcelona in consecutive games.

“We can still improve, for example in the second half against Barcelona we were too hasty. We need to improve individually in the way we deal with the game overall.

“Juventus need to get accustomed to playing this sort of game, because it’s the growth process started in the first year of Andrea Agnelli’s Presidency. This is the Juve DNA.

“We have made a journey, both as a team and a club. The important thing is to face matches with humility and the right spirit, so I want to remind everyone that Juventus haven’t actually won anything. Let’s limit the euphoria here. Enthusiasm helps you train better, but with euphoria you can slip up.

“Everyone is just waiting for Juventus to fall down, but tomorrow is decisive for the Scudetto and we need a tough performance.”

Allegri will not necessarily be rotating his lineup tomorrow.

“The usual four will start in attack. The only doubt is Juan Cuadrado, because we have to see what condition he’s in. His understudy is Mario Lemina. For the defence, everyone is so good that there isn’t an issue.

“Claudio Marchisio is fine now and he will play tomorrow. He was out in Barcelona after a knock to the calf and I didn’t want to risk having a player on the bench who couldn’t play.”

More on what will be required to get the three points against Genoa.

“The team needs to face Genoa with the right attitude and fortunately I have a great squad that sets aside personal objectives to work for the greater good. Everyone knows what they have to do.

“I don’t deserve the credit for this season. I took on a group that was already successful in Italy and I wanted to help them grow in Europe, just as they helped me to grow.”

And the press conference ended with the now-customary question about his future.

“The priority is not my contract, as I have a contract with Juve. The most important thing is to see this season through to the end.”