22 December 2014
The Italian Super Cup slipped away from Juve's grasp after 120 minutes and 18 penalties, and Massimiliano Allegri was naturally in a slightly despondent mood as he spoke to the media after the final whistle in Doha.
"It's a shame it ended the way it did tonight," he said. "It was an enjoyable match between two sides who went at each other and played an open game.
"Sadly we weren't able to clinch it during the shootout lottery despite having three match points. We couldn't make the most of our advantage and that's a pity. We played well though, apart from the start of the second period when I felt we could have done better."
Despite holding the upper hand for long spells of the encounter, the Bianconeri had to contend with a Napoli outfit that refused to give up and twice managed to find an equaliser through Gonzalo Higuain. Indeed that was the only aspect the coach felt disappointed with, having otherwise witnessed his charges play at a high intensity throughout.
"After Napoli made it 1-1 we upped the tempo and started playing again. Napoli are a very technical side and they're not easy to play against. We're a little weary at this stage of the season and I think we felt that a bit today. We needed to be more aggressive in the closing minutes of extra time," the coach added.
Asked about his decision to replace Andrea Pirlo with Roberto Pereyra, the Bianconeri boss explained: "We were struggling at that stage of the game and needed more cover in the centre. I'm sorry for the lads because they were excellent."
So how does Juventus' mid-term report look? Allegri concluded optimistically: "We're top of the table and have the Champions League last 16 to look forward to, so I'd say the season's gone pretty well so far."
