Allegri: Marotta is the best European director

Juventus beat Napoli quite comfortably in the end for a 3-1 scoreline, but the manager Massimiliano Allegri was frustrated at times with how things went in the game.

“We started a little tense, gave away too many balls and conceded the goal. Cristiano Ronaldo did well to create two or three promising situations.

“Once Napoli went down to 10 men, we stopped playing, and that made me angry. We ran a big risk on Jose Callejon’s chance and they could easily have equalised.”

Ronaldo was the star of the day with three assists -

“Ronaldo is enjoying his football, he has integrated very well and he loves an assist as well as a goal. He had some exceptional passes tonight and it’s all about finding him in the right way.

“I thought tonight and the first half-hour against Valencia represented his best performances of the season so far.”

On the team’s performance overall -

“We had created some good passing lines from midfield, Cristiano Ronaldo and Dybala playing between the lines with Mandzukic coming back to join them.

“We need to be sharper. Playing out from the back, we misplaced a pass and conceded a goal. I liked that the forwards helped out in midfield and defence.”

Does this win mean the Scudetto race is decided early?

“Absolutely not. After this, we still have to play Inter, Milan, Roma and Fiorentina. We’ve got a six-point advantage, but it’s a very long season. Also, Serie A is always tough.”

The shock of Beppe Marotta stepping down from the director role was a surprise to Allegri as well.

“I think we had four-and-a-half wonderful years together. He is the best European director. He built Juve along with all the other directors to create a winning team.

“To be honest, I don’t know what to say, because this is news to me as well. The director will be missed, but we’ll have to cover his absence.”