23 January 2016
A lot has changed since Roma beat Juventus 2-1 at the Stadio Olimpico in August. While Massimiliano Allegri’s men eventually put their slow start to the season behind them, recording ten straight league wins, the club from the capital have fallen from first place to fifth over the past two months leading to the appointment last week of Luciano Spalletti as Rudi Garcia’s replacement.
After seeing his team held to a draw by Hellas Verona, the 56-year-old manager is keen for his men to push on in a bid to breathe new life into their campaign and revive their challenge for potential honours.
Speaking to the media at Trigoria, Spalletti began: “This is a great opportunity to start working towards our original objectives again. If we enter the match thinking that we can win, then we’re capable of doing just that. If we don’t have this approach, then we certainly won’t be successful tomorrow.”
Despite acknowledging that the Bianconeri are currently the form side in the division, the Tuscan tactician stressed that his players were fully focused on their own qualities ahead of Sunday’s showdown at Juventus Stadium.
“We’re concentrating on ourselves right now, as we’re looking to take the game to the opposition, even if they are enjoying a terrific run at the moment.
“In European and global football, nowadays, teams need to be able to adapt and alter their approach according to different situations during matches and that’s precisely what we need to be doing.”
