Sarri wants ‘carefree’ Juve

By Football Italia staff

Maurizio Sarri wants to see a ‘carefree’ Juventus in Europe but admits “we’re still not balanced enough” for a Dybala-Higuain-Ronaldo front three.

Juve remain unbeaten under Sarri in competitive matches this season and opened their Champions League campaign with a 2-2 draw at Atletico Madrid.

However, they face on Tuesday a Bayer Leverkusen side who are only a point behind leaders Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga table.

“We can’t think about Inter now,” Sarri said at a Press conference.

“Bayer are only one point behind Bayern Munich and are the Bundesliga team with the best physical qualities, as well as having ​excellent runners.

“It’ll be a hugely difficult contest and it would be a crazy mistake to think beyond tomorrow. In this competition, incidents can be crucial.

“The only objective I’ve set for myself is to get through the group, then we’ll see. We must be carefree when taking to the field. The Champions League mustn’t become an obsession.

“Right now it’s very difficult for Italian teams to be favourites in the Champions League: for me, the English sides are favourites.”

Staying on the topic of Brits, the Coach admitted his ‘surprise’ at Aaron Ramsey’s rapid adaptation to Italian football.

“He’s doing well, but he still has room for improvement. I was surprised by how quickly he’s integrated.

“We did better against SPAL than Brescia but, beyond the games, what leaves me calm is our attitude in training: it leaves me thinking that we‘re destined to improve.

“Now we must grow in terms of the speed of our play and our finishing.”

With Cristiano Ronaldo, Gonzalo Higuain and Paulo Dybala all available, is lining them up in an attacking trident tempting?

“It’s a beautiful suggestion, but we’re still not balanced enough. For now, we can only try this solution for spells in matches.

“I don’t know if anyone will rest. Our physical condition is growing, but the mental one is also linked.”

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