Juventus travelled to Bergamo on Saturday night to face Atalanta, a side who had suffered back-to-back defeats in the previous seven days. With the Bianconeri perfect thus far in all competitions, they were overwhelming favourites against a team they have beaten in each of their last seven meetings.
However, the club known as the "Queen of the Provinces" was expected to make life difficult for Massimiliano Allegri’s men, who also knew Roma had beaten Hellas Verona earlier in the day. Speaking shortly before kickoff, Beppe Marotta said winning was vital regardless of other results, telling Sky Italia (h/t Football Italia ):
We must try to win every week regardless of what our rivals do. We are in a period of the season where the results aren’t the only things that count, but also the performances.
I believe Juventus are called to pass a test in every game, regardless of how prestigious their opponents are. Atalanta are perhaps considered a provincial side, but they are very competitive and hard to beat.
The Juventus director general’s comments also appeared in line with his coach’s thoughts, Allegri opting to field a strong lineup despite the looming trip away to Atletico Madrid on Wednesday. That his side recorded a comfortable 3-0 win here will be important as they prepare for that difficult Champions League tie, allowing confidence to remain high.
Over the following pages is a look at the best and worst performers from the Atalanta match, highlighting Saturday’s individual winners and losers.
//from Bleacher Report http://ift.tt/1t5Nt9L
via IFTTT September 27, 2014 at 01:54PM
0 comments:
Post a Comment