Giorgio Chiellini insists Juventus are “better” than they were in 2015 as Gianluigi Buffon deserves the Ballon d’Or “for what he does, not what he is.”

Juve lost 3-1 to Barcelona in the Champions League Final two years ago, but Chiellini believes his side will fare better when they do battle with Real Madrid this Saturday.

“Defence? Ultimately, we defend as a team, whether it’s a back three, four or five or six,” the defender said at a Press conference as part of ‘Media Day’ for the showdown in Cardiff.

Giorgio Chiellini insists Juventus are “better” than they were in 2015 as Gianluigi Buffon deserves the Ballon d’Or “for what he does, not what he is.”

Juve lost 3-1 to Barcelona in the Champions League Final two years ago, but Chiellini believes his side will fare better when they do battle with Real Madrid this Saturday.

“Defence? Ultimately, we defend as a team, whether it’s a back three, four or five or six,” the defender said at a Press conference as part of ‘Media Day’ for the showdown in Cardiff.

“You make the difference with attitude, the spirit of sacrifice of everyone. We’re solid defensively but we still have to prove it on Saturday.

“The build-up? I’m experiencing it like my teammates who were [in the Final] two years ago.

“We feel different and better than two years ago, aside from the improved technical quality in our squad.

“Now we’ll have to prove it on the pitch, where we’ll be faced by a team with more experience [in CL Finals] than us.

“Madrid? They can punish you just like that. It’s always the way that it seems like they’ve given you the chance to win, but they also have extraordinary players in every area of ​​the pitch and know how to bring the result home.

“Centre-backs? Mine and Leo’s characteristics are visible and plain to see.

“At the back, there are five centre-back of equal quality, but with different characteristics.

“There’s been a lot of talk about me, Barzagli and Bonucci, but we mustn’t forget that the other [three] would be playing [regularly] at any other club.

“Bale or Isco? There are differences in their characteristics and how the team play [with either on the pitch].

“Better or worse doesn’t exist, they’re both world-class, but we’ll have to make some adjustments, depending on which one plays.

“Still, Isco has been an added value in last few months. He’s been so decisive, together with Cristiano [Ronaldo].

“Ballon d’Or? I’m lucky to have played all my career with Buffon, and it’s possible that I don’t know what it means to play without a phenomenon like him.

“It’s not right to give him the Ballon d’Or for his career, but if he deserves it then it’s for what he does, not what he is.

“I hope he wins it because it would be the result of winning, perhaps even in the Champions League.

“On Saturday, we’ll need something extraordinary from him, like his save on Iniesta.

“South Americans? They’re an important part of our dressing room. There’s a great mutual respect, they also bring happiness and light-heartedness to us Italians, who are a bit more uptight and serious.

“They seem to play like they’re with friends from their neighbourhood, but on the pitch they’re sincere.

“BBC v BBC? It’d be ridiculous to say that the game will be played there, although handling Real’s attacking might will be important, so we must try to keep them as far away from our box as possible.

“We must be good at finding the right balance between defence, possession and the various situations that are in a game.

“They’re so strong that they don’t have a Juventus complex, despite the fact that in recent years we’ve always done well against them.

“Two years ago? We were at the end of a cycle for various reasons, but in my opinion we’re not anymore. There’s still two or three years until it happens again.

“Someone will retire, someone will want to have a change of scenery, but then someone else will do well, like it’s always been.

“I believe that there’s been a steady growth on our part, then our change of formation gave us a new lymph and motivation.

“We often won, but we weren’t happy, maybe because maybe we didn’t have fun [winning].

“If I have to pick [our best] match, however, I’d say the one against Barcelona, with all respect to Porto.

“After 20 minutes, we played 11 v 10 against a good team but not a great one. Still, I wouldn’t focus on a single game.”

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