Allegri: Juventus set goal of climbing up the table

Juventus return to league action this weekend with a trip to Spezia. The Bianconeri are coming off a home draw against Nantes in the Europa League playoffs first leg, but coach Massimiliano Allegri insisted his focus was entirely on this weekend’s league game.

“We have to continue in what are our mini-goals. It will be a complicated match, it’s a difficult place to go and Spezia are a team that create a lot, like what happened also with Napoli and Atalanta.

“We need a fair game, played with attention and determination. We set ourselves the goal of climbing more positions in the table. Regardless of what happens outside, we have to work on the points scored in the league.

“The Europa League is not compromised, in Europe it is always difficult to win games. Then football is strange, despite having a piece of the match where we could have done better, we had important chances.”

Would Allegri rotate the squad for this weekend given they play a decider next Thursday?

“Those who play a lot are used to it. Tomorrow Federico Chiesa won’t be there because he played two games in four days and he was very tired, normal after 10 months of being out.

“Mattia Perin will return and play, the others I will have to evaluate. Surely there will be some changes. Three who play tomorrow are Moise Kean, Perin and Daniele Rugani. The others I have to evaluate and decide.”

Juve this week extended the contract of talented young Dutchman Dean Huijsen.

“He is very good, but I think there have already been boys in the first team this year. Next year we’ll see, we have to think about finishing this year in the best possible way.”

He also addressed the issue within his side where they seem to lose concentration often.

“We thought about it, it needs to be improved. More a mental thing, we have to think that in a season you can’t think of never conceding goals.

“There is a lot of time to win a game, to recover. We must have the serenity to go for the second goal. We are still unbalanced in that sense.”

Allegri has appeared to be overly emotional in recent weeks.

“I’m not nervous, something happened with someone booing for no reason. The other night was perhaps a wrong reaction, but I can be criticised for many things.

“But there’s one thing, you shouldn’t talk about facts. On that, one cannot argue, then I accept that I am poor, my teams suck. But you can’t argue about numbers.

“I’m sorry when I had the reaction the other night, I have no reaction if I’m criticised because everyone can have their own opinion. But about numbers nothing is debatable.”