Andrea Barzagli has expressed his satisfaction at the Bianconeri’s ability to put last weekend’s defeat to Sampdoria behind them by returning to winning ways in Wednesday’s Coppa Italia quarter-final showdown with historic rivals Milan.
Speaking to Italian broadcaster Sky Sport, the 31-year-old said: “We required a great performance against Milan and did well to pull it out of the bag. The manager asked for an immediate response and that’s exactly what we provided. We enjoyed an excellent first half of the season and even if we expected a different start to the year, we managed to bounce back immediately.”
Despite Antonio Conte’s men commanding a five-point lead at the summit of Serie A, Barzagli warned against complacency as the Bianconeri prepare to embark on a busy few months in three prestigious competitions.
“We’re at the top of the league, but there’s still the entire second half of the season ahead of us and we need to go back to expressing our usual rhythm. The same goes for the Coppa Italia and Champions League: we must face every game with great attention, but this, after all, is our mentality.”
The imposing centre-back then looked ahead to Sunday’s trip to the Tardini, where he will be tasked with shackling the threat posed by former Bianconeri frontman Amauri.
“He’s certainly an important member of their team, but he’s not the only one to keep an eye on. Parma have many decent players, such as Belfodil. They’re going great guns at home, so the game will be anything but straightforward for us.”
Barzagli concluded by expressing his belief that Juventus’ strong defensive unit has been a fundamental aspect of their success under Conte’s reign.
“Last year we were the championship’s strongest defence and we’re showing that again. In Europe there are perhaps defenders who, individually speaking, are better than us, but I think that on an organizational level there are few teams up to our standard.”
Source: Juventus.com
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