On the eve of the Serie A match against Napoli, Juventus coach Thiago Motta spoke. Below are his answers to questions from journalists in the room.
How is the inclusion of the two new boys going? How is the group doing?
“The inclusion of the two new ones very good. The group well. All the players who played last game are available. We have not only Arek, Gleison and Juan who are recovering from somewhat longer injuries.”
Also considering Conte’s impact in Napoli, how satisfied are you with his level of engraving in Juventus? Do you think you have any credit for what has happened with injuries?
“To say it’s not really a similar situation. I don’t have to reiterate what I said about Napoli. What has been done by us does not represent a situation exactly similar. There are differences in so many aspects. I am satisfied with many things and others less so, especially a few too many draws that I have talked about previously. Our idea is always to do great work during the week, every day, to get to the game and get the win. Of many other things done I am very satisfied. We have a very young team, but with great talent. There were some unforeseen injuries at the beginning of the season. We always had the courage to overcome every difficulty that came in front of us. There were a lot of changes in the roster that was there before and they were necessary for different reasons. Tomorrow we will play a big game in our league, which is Napoli-Juventus.”
Had Kolo Muani already trained with you before resolving the bureaucratic problems that led only yesterday to the officialdom of his landing at Juve? Has he already come into his playing philosophy and is he ready for starting games?
“Randal is available in the group and we will see tomorrow whether he will start or not. The important thing is that we got a player of his level because we think he is needed not for my soccer, but for the need that there needs to be in a team like Juventus. We think he, like all the guys on the roster, can help the team to get to win games.”
How much is the match against Napoli worth in terms of importance? Is the reason for the gap between the two teams more the demerit of the Bianconeri or the merit of the Azzurri?
“The reality is that Napoli is in that position because they have a great team with a good coach and deservedly they are in 1st place. Right now, we are behind. Tomorrow will definitely be a great game, as Napoli and Juventus always have been. We want to give our best version to get to the victory.”
Are there thirteen points between Juve and Napoli, or is the ranking not real?
“The reality is that they are deservedly in front. It’s a great team with a good coach. This is the reality. We did a good preparation to come tomorrow ready and have a good performance against the first in the standings, looking for the best result.”
Can Kolo Muani’s arrival be a stimulus for other strikers and particularly for Vlahovic?
“First, Randal came because we think he is a top-level player for the needs of a team as big as Juventus. In the game against Bruges I made a call on our strikers, which I saw passed off as criticism. I have never allowed myself to criticize a player of mine; in fact, I would criticize a player of mine for only one reason: for attitude. Since the attitude of my players is impeccable, I do not make any criticism. I made a call on our forwards because I know the value they have and I know they have the potential to be able to help the team right now, also because we are seven forwards. Having said that, I know it is difficult for all of them because I have been in there quite some time and when I speak I do it with great ownership, not so much to talk.
I know it is difficult for them to express themselves to the best of their ability with so many things beyond soccer, but also externally, that can lead to a difficult time. When I talked about them it was in that sense here, to call out something because I recognize the value and the potential that they have that can help the team. If you go and review all my interviews, I have never criticized a player of mine, because I have never had any reason to be able to criticize them. As a coach there are big demands, because it is also that for myself, in that coaching at Juve leads to a daily demand to get to a result. There are also for them, but it was not a criticism. Those who say that are completely wrong.”
How important for raising the level in training is internal competition and how difficult is it for you to make the choices for tomorrow?
“The most difficult thing is to leave a player without playing if there are so many who deserve to play, however, only eleven can go on the field. The question is very good, because for me the competition there is in training makes the team grow so much, especially being a big team like ours. In a great team it is normal that there is great competition between players, and with so many games that we have played and will have to play, certainly this competition will raise the level in training, but especially then in the game. Because if one plays well, the other one, in order to continue to accompany the team, surely has to improve and continue to make that extra effort to be able to follow the team. This is the most important point to grow the team.”
Do you expect a game and a tactical attitude of Napoli similar to the game in the first round?
“I expect a different game from that match there because the opposing team plays at home, although it is a characteristic of Napoli to regroup and stay with a low block, trying to limit the opposing attack. It is no accident that they have only taken fourteen goals so far. Then, with the players they have in front of them, when they recover they are a team that is able to restart. Playing at home they will certainly try to play the game. I expect a Napoli that will want to play and attack. We should compete with them to also have the game, make a good organized defensive phase, knowing when we have to press, and, when we have the ball, attack them well, with balance, creating the situations that we have seen and that they can suffer.”
Is the arrival of Kolo Muani and the employment of Nico Gonzalez in the center of the attack a message that hierarchies may change or does Vlahovic always remain at the center of the project?
“Randal can play on the sides, as can Nico. We have alternatives and Dusan has played a lot so far. He had this last injury that left him a little bit out of the team and now he is coming back. He has come in in the last two games and we will see for tomorrow who will start and who will contribute in the running game.”
How satisfied are you with Locatelli’s impact and performance since the beginning of the season? How important, on the character side, is his presence in the locker room?
“His character in the locker room is so important, that’s why that eventually with normality, naturally, without forcing anything, he became the team captain. The way I see it, it’s done that way. He has earned it as an example, through training, through games, through behavior and attitude. Plus, in the field, the role and the functions he can do are very important things for the team. He is capable of being more up front, which is a role that individually he knows how to do better, because he is more used to doing it and because of his characteristics it is definitely more advantageous. However, of the matches made with a different role, which certainly, for himself, he cannot express himself as when he is more in front, however, for the team, if you go and see, he is very functional, because he makes the team work better.
To conclude, sometimes he gets into trouble for the sake of the team. This is what should be asked of a player, but especially a captain. He has earned it with his work and attitude, day in and day out. In the last few games, he has played a role that, if we go to focus on Manu, you say, “wow, he does it well, but he could do it better up front.” However, in that role there, he makes his teammates and, especially, the forwards do better. That’s what I ask of these guys, and he’s able to do it with the right attitude. I never heard a complaint, a can’t do, a maybe or a maybe. No, I have heard a I can do it, I am convinced to do it, and if it is for the good of the team, I will do it 200 percent. That’s why he is an example for others.”
Did you expect a Juve with less difficulty in your management?
“When I talked about difficulties, I talked about the unforeseen injuries. Earlier I talked about many other things that happened, but with the right attitude and attitude we always overcame. So many performances we did well even in difficulty, not having the result we wanted. Sometimes we deserved something more and sometimes we didn’t, because we didn’t do well in getting there. That is the point we definitely have to improve, because we know the need to be a team like Juventus, that in the end, the important thing about all the work done is to get to have the result.
At times we deservedly got it because the performance was very good, while at times, with performances with which we could get to the result, we were not able to get there. I still think that when a team is superior to the result they have a better chance of getting to the win. We are not happy because we did not get the win. Tomorrow we have another good game to play against a great team in the league, it’s the same story. We want to be superior to get to the win, which is the most important thing.”
The article Juve, Thiago Motta: “So many changes in the squad were necessary” comes from JuveNews.eu.
