06 April 2015
With victory by a two-goal margin the required outcome to send Juventus through to the Coppa Italia final in 90 minutes of action, Massimiliano Allegri is under no illusions regarding the task that lies ahead for his side on Tuesday night at the Artemio Franchi.
An in-form Fiorentina outfit, playing some flowing football under the tutelage of Vincenzo Montella, have a 2-1 scoreline in their favour when hostilities resume tomorrow evening in Tuscany.
Despite this, Allegri remains confident his men have what it takes to turn the tables on their opponents, provided they maintain their composure whilst pursuing the comeback.
Speaking to the media in Vinovo, the 47-year-old began: “We have to go to Florence to try and turn the negative first-leg result around. It won’t be easy and right now the scoreline makes them favourites.
“They’re having a great spell, playing well and achieving excellent results. So we need to put in an intelligent performance and be under no illusions that Fiorentina are a very strong technical side and play good football.
“We also have to remember that we don’t need to try and settle the match in half an hour. It will be a long game and we must be very alert and keep focused for the entire 90 minutes. To turn it around we need to win by two goals.
“We know we can score these, but they might come ten minutes from the end. There’s no need for us to get hung up on trying to win the game straight away.”
Allegri says he will pick the starting line-up best suited to the encounter but, aside from the inclusion of Marco Storari in goal and confirmation of a back four, kept his cards close to his chest when quizzed on his team.
He did however express his satisfaction at the current condition of his side, who have benefitted from a much-needed breather over the recent international break.
“Storari will play. I’ll pick the rest of the team according to who I believe is best suited for the match. We’ve had the international break and been able to recharge our batteries. The squad is doing well, both physically and mentally. Whether they start or come on later, all players must be in the right shape to give a big performance.
“Anything can happen in the last 15 minutes of a match, so we have to be very patient. We need to score at least twice and that could take us to extra time, then we’ll see what happens. It’s not an easy task, but we have the ability to turn the tie around.”
