Juve must grow as a team to overcome slump, says Allegri

Juventus will need to grow as a team if they are to get out of their current slump, manager Massimiliano Allegri said after they drew against relegated Salernitana yesterday.

Juve were on their way to a humiliating Serie A loss at home when Adrien Rabiot equalised in stoppage time for a 1-1 draw.

It was a fifth straight league draw for Allegri’s side, which has seen them slip to fourth, seven points behind second-placed AC Milan and level on 67 points with Bologna in third.

“Anyone who has played football knows that even the great teams can experience a moment of difficulty when the games become tough. We will certainly have to grow,” Allegri said.

Their Italian Cup final against Atalanta on Wednesday presents an opportunity for redemption.

“The final against a team like Atalanta that has grown a lot will certainly be balanced,” Allegri said. “It’s a one-off game and we will have to try to make as few mistakes as possible.

When asked about his future at the Turin club, Allegri stressed that he was focused on finishing the season.

“Regarding my future, just be patient a little bit longer, in 10-15 days you’ll know what will happen next year,” he said.

Regarding the match, the 56-year-old said the performance was not satisfactory but at least they did not lose.

“We started reasonably well, then made a mistake in our decision making. We became disjointed and we didn’t hold our positions,” he said.

“You can’t lose a match like that, otherwise you risk never picking yourselves back up again.” — Reuters