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Allegri: “Strength and steel against Samp”

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Allegri: “Strength and steel against Samp”
Allegri: “Strength and steel against Samp”
Allegri: “Strength and steel against Samp”

Following the disappointment of Saturday’s 1-0 loss to Milan, Massimiliano Allegri stressed the importance of bouncing back at the first time of asking when they host Sampdoria tomorrow night at Juventus Stadium.

Here are the Tuscan tactician’s key quotations from today’s press conference in Vinovo.

Familiar faces set for returns

“One or maybe two of Kwadwo Asamoah, Daniele Rugani and Claudio Marchisio will play against Sampdoria, while Giorgio Chiellini also ought to return to the fold tomorrow.

“Our situation up front is that both Paulo Dybala and Marko Pjaca, whose respective conditions will continue to be monitored this week, won’t be available for selection until after the next international break in November.

“Tomorrow will see Gonzalo Higuain and Mario Mandzukic line up in attack. The two can complement one another well and forge an effective partnership.

“I’ll wait until after tomorrow’s training session to make my mind up about who will feature in midfield, while Neto will start between the sticks, given that Gigi Buffon has had a couple of well-deserved days off this week.”

On the right path

“It was unthinkable that we would have wrapped up the league title after just nine matches. Had we won them all, we’d be on 27 points which isn’t even enough to avoid relegation.

“We’re top of the Serie A standings and our Champions League group too, having sealed a fine win in Lyon, so we just need to keep marching on and deal with any difficulties we face over the course of the campaign.

“Then, we’ll look to make improvements in the way we play, such as ensuring the best possible supply line to Higuain. At the end of the day it’s the results that matter.”

Samp no slouches

“Sampdoria won their derby against Genoa at the weekend and had played well in previous matches without getting the results. They’re a good side with a good coach, they’re well-organised and tomorrow will be a tricky game.

“They’ve some fine players, especially in attack, such as Fabio Quagliarella, Luis Muriel, Ricky Alvarez and Bruno Fernandes, all of whom are very good technically and can be deadly on the counter-attack.

“Tomorrow we’ll need to get in their faces and make sure we keep a clean sheet, having conceded in our last two league games.”

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