Max Allegri insists Napoli are “still the Scudetto favourites” after Juventus conquered the Stadio San Paolo 1-0. “Winning games isn’t all about possession.”
Gonzalo Higuain got the only goal of the game, moving the Bianconeri to within a point of the Serie A leaders.
“It was a good test tonight, the lads had some favourable situations in the first half and took the lead,” Allegri told Mediaset Premium.
Max Allegri insists Napoli are “still the Scudetto favourites” after Juventus conquered the Stadio San Paolo 1-0. “Winning games isn’t all about possession.”
Gonzalo Higuain got the only goal of the game, moving the Bianconeri to within a point of the Serie A leaders.
“It was a good test tonight, the lads had some favourable situations in the first half and took the lead,” Allegri told Mediaset Premium.
“Napoli kept a lot of possession in the second half and put pressure on, but we allowed them very little in terms of chances. If anything, Pepe Reina performed a miracle on Blaise Matuidi.
“Now we are one point behind Napoli, it’s a good result, but we have to look forward now to Tuesday, as there is a place in the Champions League Round of 16 at stake.
“We have to compliment Napoli, who put in a good performance, confirmed they are still the Scudetto favourites and play really pleasant football.”
With Mario Mandzukic, Benedikt Howedes and Stephan Lichtsteiner injured, Allegri opted for a 4-4-1-1 in defence, turning to 4-3-2-1 in attack.
“Douglas Costa is an extraordinary player, he can do things on a technical level that few others can. Medhi Benatia is in good shape, but we need in general to be braver in playing the ball out of defence.
“I told the lads that normal effort and normal performances are not enough, we need extraordinary levels to match the extraordinary players in the squad.
“Naturally against Napoli you have to close down their left flank and the vertical passing lines, while they tend to struggle with crosses. We had to remain organised and continue to direct Napoli towards the areas where they weren’t going to cause us problems.
“Winning games isn’t all about possession, but rather making the most of your strengths, identifying the weaknesses of your opponents and getting the best out of those situations.
“The tactics depend on the games and the players at your disposal. We have a group of extraordinary players who have done marvellous things are now trying to go beyond legend. We know that it takes something beyond normality.”