In defense Bremer towards the return, Vlahovic risks the bench. The coach focuses on the loyal Rabiot-Danilo-Locatelli
The first time is always a little special and out of the ordinary. The first time Massimiliano Allegri played in the Champions League with Juventus, he surprisingly went all the way: with Antonio Conte, the Lady had stopped in the quarterfinals one year and the following year she had gone out in the group stage and Europe of the big names was a kind of bogeyman for gamers. “The day we made our debut – the coach recounted some time later – I saw many of my white-faced men, terrified only at the idea of having to play against Malmoe”. With Max at the helm, the bianconeri have recovered the European dimension: after Berlin (2015) another final (2017), two eliminations in the quarterfinals and two in the round of 16. Only one stain, the exit in the group stage this season, which however can be canceled by conquering the Europa League. The only taboo that Allegri has failed to break is that of the last step: Juventus have not lifted a European trophy for over twenty years, to be precise since the 1997 European Super Cup won against PSG.
The Lady’s slogan reminds us that winning is the only thing that matters and after a season without titles, the Juventus coach is still hunting for the first cup of his second cycle. It would also be the same for the new management, which took office at the beginning of 2023. “I’m confident,” said sports area manager Francesco Calvo upon leaving the League. A trust shared by the coach, who thanks to Gatti’s equalizer in the extra minutes of injury time put everything back in balance with Sevilla. And balance will be the key word in tomorrow’s match, which will be played in a very hot stadium and against a team that has become their home in the Europa League, winning it 4 times in the last 10 years. In the first leg Juventus found themselves down and then had to chase, in the return Max has another score in mind, also mindful of the difficulties encountered at the Stadium, where the greatest dangers in the first half came from Ocampos, replaced after half an hour due to injury .
The Argentine has recovered and should be on the pitch tomorrow, which is why Allegri will have to decide whether to insist on Alex Sandro (freshly renewed, automatically activated for another season upon reaching presence number 36) or move Danilo to that side. focusing on Gatti (Max’s life saver on the way). In the first round, the coach started with a three-man defense and then switched to a four-man in the second half and it is from there that he could start again, lowering Cuadrado and betting everything on the trident. One of the knots to solve is Kostic-Chiesa: the first remained at rest with Cremonese, saving precious energy, the second played a good game after a dark period and is a candidate for a starting shirt.
Allegri will also prepare her thinking about extra time, focusing on substitutions to make the difference. He certainly won’t give up any of his loyalists: Danilo, Bremer (absent in the first leg), Locatelli and Rabiot are among the most used this season and it would be surprising to see one of the four sitting on the bench. The same goes for Di Maria, the man of the matches that count, used to even more important stages and capable of changing the course of events with a flicker or an invention. Fideo is the only one sure of his place in attack, Chiesa will depend on how he recovered from Sunday’s match, Vlahovic on the other hand is in a run-off with Milik: the Serbian did not convince with Cremonese and not just because he failed to score. Milik plays more for the team, sacrifices himself and returns. Therefore Allegri could choose the Pole, praised by the coach in the pre-Seville conference, for the challenge that can bring Juventus back to a European final 6 years after the last time. Max believes it and prepares the cheer.
May 17, 2023 (change May 17, 2023 | 11:12 am)
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