Allegri: Things change, people come and go, but Juventus will always remain

Juventus beat bottom club Salernitana 2-0 but not without some drama and difficulty despite controlling most of the game. The Bianconeri also had a goal ruled out after VAR saw an offside, and there was even a late penalty miss too.

After the game, captain Giorgio Chiellini commented that he and his teammates were inspired by what coach Massimiliano Allegri said to them following the demoralizing defeat against Atalanta.

“It was a good performance, but the coach used the right words yesterday and today to let us realise what we need to do. We need a sense of responsibility, don’t do anything extraordinary, just do it with the right mentality. We played with the right respect and humility, which we couldn’t avoid in our current position, and we prepare for the next match.

“We played it clean today, it doesn’t always work, but we managed it this evening. We knew it would be difficult once Salernitana were playing under their Curva with the fans so passionate, but we held out.

“I was really impressed with the words of the coach. Juventus have given so much to me and all my teammates, so this is the time to give back. We must all stay close to this club and together we’ll get out of this situation.

“The club gave us all so much and it is the time to give back.”

Allegri was asked about his words to his team.

“It hasn’t been an easy time, we lost to Atalanta and could’ve scored more goals this evening. I said Juventus have given us so much and it is time we have a sense of responsibility and give back to this club. We need to focus, because we’ve failed too many times against the smaller clubs this season.

“I told the lads, we had a lot of young players on the field today, so in these moments, they can suffer under the pressure. Fortunately, they held out well.

“We’re trailing in the league at the moment because we dropped points too many times. These players have talent, but let’s not forget that only with experience, by making mistakes and learning from them, understanding when it’s time to attack or defend, that is how they develop.”

The coach commended his side for their showing tonight, and credited Dejan Kulusevski who got the start and laid the ball off for Paulo Dybala’s opener, but seemed to disappear in the second half.

“I think the lads put in a good performance tonight. It wasn’t easy against Salernitana in front of their fans and we ran a few risks in the second half with crosses into the box.

“Kulusevski is only 21 years old, he can only improve with the help of the more experienced players around him. When the results go our way, that process is accelerated.

“The best thing at these moments is to simplify. We tried the passing moves in training yesterday and today I focused more on the mentality. The words Chiellini said are what I said to the team. We are the ones who now must give back to Juventus, the players, coach, the fans, everyone.”

The issues with Juventus continue off the pitch too, with a recent raid conducted on the club offices regarding inflated transfer fees.

“The President spoke, we need to do our work on the pitch and do it as well as possible. I don’t know what happened over the last two years, I just know that the President asked me to be part of Juventus again, to be part of a new project with less experience than the side I left.

“Naturally, we’re going to have ups and downs. I am still getting to know the players, they are getting to know me, and we play every three days. We achieved the first target by progressing in the Champions League, now we should have a little more time to work in training.

“Things change, people come and go, but Juventus remain and will always remain. Life goes in cycles, it has to be accepted as a challenge. I accepted this challenge knowing it was difficult, because it’s impossible to win more than nine years in a row, surely?

“Now we must have the responsibility of being at Juventus and the ambition to aim as high as possible.”