19 May 2015
Giorgio Chiellini says he is determined to end the Bianconeri’s 20-year wait for Coppa Italia glory by helping his team-mates to overcome Lazio in Wednesday evening’s final at the Stadio Olimpico.
The defender was involved the last time Juventus ventured down to the capital in search of a domestic double after winning the Scudetto, and says their defeat to Napoli in 2012 is something that will spur them on to go one better this time around.
Speaking to the media in Rome, the 30-year-old began: “It’s a special final because Juventus haven’t won this trophy for a long time. I’ve been here for 10 years and in all this time we’ve got to just one Coppa Italia final and the fact we lost it still rankles. Winning this one is really important to us and our thoughts are exclusively on tomorrow’s game.”
If the Bianconeri are to lift the trophy tomorrow night they will have to navigate their way past a Lazio outfit who are blessed with strength across the park.
A player Chiellini identified as one to watch out for is attacking midfielder Felipe Anderson, who is playing his best football for the Biancocelesti since completing a move from his native Brazil in 2013.
“Felipe Anderson’s got a good engine, pace, skill, passing ability and a decent shot on him. He’s put in consistent displays and his explosion on to the scene has enabled Lazio to make an important step up.”
With the Champions League final against Barcelona now just over two weeks away, questions on the mouthwatering European showdown were in plentiful supply during this evening’s press conference.
But Chiellini insists he and the rest of the squad will not be allowing themselves to get distracted, pointing at the team’s unquestionable desire to overcome every individual hurdle as proof of his point.
“Our strength has always been our ability to take things one game at a time. We’ll focus on tomorrow’s game and try to win, then we’ll shift our attentions to the match on 6 June, but there’s still a long way to go before you can talk about a possible treble.
“What’s important is maintaining our will to win and celebrate, because that’s been the driving force behind our success over these past few years. We’ve done well to not rest on our laurels, and that’s been our strength in recent seasons.”
