Allegri: 'Juve needed reminder'

By Football Italia staff

Max Allegri told off Juventus for “falling asleep” in the 3-2 thriller at Chievo, but confessed “we needed this to remind us nothing is to be taken for granted.”

The Bianconeri had taken an early lead through Sami Khedira, then Mariusz Stepinski and an Emanuele Giaccherini penalty turned it around.

Leonardo Bonucci pressured Mattia Bani into an own goal and late on Federico Bernardeschi poked in an Alex Sandro assist for the dramatic victory.

“We lowered our guard a little, even in our passing, because we thought the game was in hand and lowered the tempo too,” the Coach told Sky Sport Italia.

“You allow the press from the opposition, defend badly and ultimately are going to concede. It was a great victory that we needed, because we needed this reminder right from the start that every match in Serie A is difficult and nothing is to be taken for granted.

“The most important thing in the first few rounds is to take the points home.”

It was Cristiano Ronaldo’s Serie A debut and, although he did not score, he did force several saves from Stefano Sorrentino.

“Ronaldo held out well physically, has only been training with us for seven days and did really well. It’s a pity he wasn’t able to score a goal.

“It depends on the characteristics of the players near him. Ronaldo had several shots on target today, Sorrentino made several saves, there were also some good movements that were not rewarded by the midfielders. Those are movements that must be read from the back with the ball provided in the right spot.

“I was most impressed that Ronaldo settled in to the team, he was very happy in the locker room and had his chances.

“The main problem tonight was we let the concentration levels drop and we simply cannot afford to do that.”

There is a great deal of competition in midfield now at Juventus, with Emre Can and Blaise Matuidi among others.

“Khedira is a player beyond reproach. He scored nine goals last season, immediately got one today. I heard a lot of criticism since he’s been at Juventus and he always replied on the pitch. He’s one of those players who understands the tempo of the game and you miss him when he’s not there,” insisted Allegri.

“Joao Cancelo had a good first half, then after the penalty – which can happen – he let his head drop and almost seemed to feel guilty. These things can happen, the important thing is to react to them.

“When you have as much quality as we do, including Alex Sandro and Cancelo at full-back, you need to finish off the game earlier. We had the chances and dominated possession, but didn’t finish it.

“It’s a different approach to the attack and supply when Ronaldo is there compared to Mandzukic. I saw some positive things, others less positive. In the first half we got stretched out and there was no reason for it. We had to remain organised.

“We were caught napping on the equaliser and did better with Bernardeschi and Mandzukic coming on towards the end. We need to find balance, but the most important thing is not to fall asleep when we’re doing well.”

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