Losing in final hurt – it won’t happen again
JUVE GOT TO WIN THIS ONE ROARS MAX
MAX ALLEGRI has told his Juventus players that losing the Champions League Final is not an option.
Juve tackle Spanish giants Real Madrid tomorrow night, with their coach hell-bent on picking up the trophy.
Allegri suffered the heartbreak of a final defeat to Barcelona two years ago and it’s not something that he wants to experience again.
The 49-year-old said: “Have we learned anything from losing in the 2015 final?
“You learn something every day, never mind in a Champions League Final.
Convinced
“Only a few people get to lift this trophy. In the last three years, we’ve played in one final and this will be our second. But this time we have to lay our hands on the trophy.”
And Allegri is convinced his side can ruin Real’s bid to become the first team to retain the trophy in the Champions League era.
He added: “Madrid have a lot of strengths. They’re an extraordinary side with great technique and pace.
“They are used to playing in these kinds of games, so it will be a great final.
“We should be very pleased that we’ve made it this far.
“But we are going into this year with a completely different level of belief than in 2015.”
Allegri’s team have sampled the taste of winning trophies and he’s hoping that will drive his men on this time.
He said: “We have raised the bar after winning the league title five times in a row, reaching the Champions League Final, winning the Coppa Italia twice and the Super Cup.
“This team needs to constantly set the bar even higher and go after an even bigger target.
“Compared with the 2015 final in Berlin, our squad has changed in almost every position.
“Only four or five players are still here. Our confidence has increased, our awareness of our own ability has gone up and the atmosphere has improved.”
The tantalising prospect of seeing defensive masters Juve try to outfox the attacking flair of Real has the whole world waiting in anticipation.
“I don’t know where it will be won and lost, because finals are decided by individual episodes,” said the Juve boss.
“After 20 minutes against Barcelona we thought we’d lost it and then after drawing level we thought we’d won it but, ultimately, we ended up losing. It will be fascinating.”