Max Allegri explained his tactical approach to beating Borussia Dortmund, which meant Juventus giving up possession.
Carlos Tevez saw his opener wiped out by Marco Reus, then Alvaro Morata secured the 2-1 first leg victory.
“It was a fair result, though we could’ve had more goals and had far more scoring opportunities. I thought we had a good second half and allowed Borussia practically nothing,” the Coach told Sky Sport Italia.
Max Allegri explained his tactical approach to beating Borussia Dortmund, which meant Juventus giving up possession.
Carlos Tevez saw his opener wiped out by Marco Reus, then Alvaro Morata secured the 2-1 first leg victory.
“It was a fair result, though we could’ve had more goals and had far more scoring opportunities. I thought we had a good second half and allowed Borussia practically nothing,” the Coach told Sky Sport Italia.
“We know their qualities, as they like to play with pace and run into spaces. The Champions League will always be a balanced encounter and we defended in an organised manner.
“We didn’t make the most of two or three counter-attacks when clear on goal, as we got the final ball wrong.
“It was a big test against a great side and the lads did well. Now we’ll focus on the head-to-head with Roma in Serie A and after that think about Dortmund.”
Juventus had less possession on their own turf, but Allegri revealed that was a precise game-plan.
“To break down Borussia you need technique, precision and intensity. It was a very tactical game and I think we had more chances than they did.
“We prepared this tactic, to invite Borussia forward, clog the midfield and therefore create spaces behind them. At this level you can’t try to dominate your opponents, so we aimed to make the most of their defensive weaknesses.
“Borussia were very intense in the first half, but lost some of that over time and we emerged with more chances to increase our lead.
“They were arranged in a slightly different way, playing 4-3-3 and trying to attack our full-backs. We emerged well from those situations, though were closed up more down the right and should’ve done better.”
A 2-1 first leg result is a dangerous one going to Dortmund for the second leg, but Allegri is confident.
“I leave this game with few doubts and many certainties. The team needs to grow and it was an important test after a difficult group phase.
“In the end we got the result by playing good football against a side with specific characteristics, so we adapted to those.”
There was bad news in the first half when Andrea Pirlo limped off with a calf injury and now has to be at risk against Roma too.
“He went off with a calf problem and will be evaluated tomorrow morning. We’ll see.”