24 December 2017
Massimiliano Allegri was full of praise for Juventus after they sent out a message to the rest of Serie A with a 1-0 win over Roma at Allianz Stadium on Saturday night.
Despite a late flurry from the Giallorossi, Allegri’s Bianconeri side dug deep to hold on for another impressive result against one of their title rivals.
"We weren’t able to put it to bed, partly because we created problems for ourselves and partly because Roma are a good side with technically gifted players," the coach said, speaking after the game. "You have to hand it to the lads – they produced a top performance tonight and showed a real willingness to work hard and end this run of three head-to-head games on a high.
"There was a misunderstanding between the centre-backs at the end and when [Alessandro] Florenzi hit the bar. We gave Roma encouragement when the match looked pretty comfortable, but a 1-0 win is fine and gives us a morale boost."
It means Juventus have taken seven points from a possible nine in games against Napoli, Inter and Roma in December, but Allegri insisted that his team must continue working hard to build on their good form.
"We are Juventus and we live for these games, but it’s vital that we maintain the same level of focus in other games because they’re all just as important," he said. "Roma are a solid side and they have a game in hand, so this win is particularly important. Napoli are perhaps a little bit ahead of the rest, but Inter are still there and so are Lazio."
Allegri was also asked about the decision to keep Paulo Dybala on the bench against Eusebio Di Francesco’s side.
"I have to make decisions and given the characteristics of the opposition, we needed physicality tonight," he said.
