JUVENTUS PLAYERS ADMIT TO ISSUES IN CAMP

Juventus have had one of the most successful few years in club football.

They have retained the local league in Italy – the Serie A – for years now. Despite relative problems in advancing in Europe, they have not done too badly as they reached the Champions League final in 2015.

The club added players to its ranks in a bid to consolidate on the successes. Whilst they are not doing too badly, there have been a few stumbles and the team members have admitted it.

Fullback Patrice Evra pointed out that the team was taking its time as they were gelling.

“At the end of the day, it’s the objective that counts, which is to win the Scudetto and Champions League. As [Max] Allegri said, it’s not as if we’re going to achieve that today or tomorrow.

“I do agree that our style of football can be criticized. I want to win, in a calm way and that means controlling the game. We mustn’t think ‘oh we won and that’s the most important thing,’ then go out to laugh and joke in training,” Evra said.

He admitted that the new additions would require time for the team to be a cohesive unit.

“No, Allegri tells us what is good and what’s not working; we watch the videos back and try to improve. But it’s not easy, as this is a new group of talented players who still don’t know each other well and a team is not built in three months.

“I want people to judge us at the end and in that case they’ll call us ‘failures’ if we haven’t won anything,” the French star added.

Gonzalo ‘Pipita’ Higuain also admitted some strange feeling that only time could solve.

“I play well alongside Mario Mandzukic, even though we haven’t played together very much. There’s a whole season ahead of us. I am in a new team and trying to improve myself,” Higuain said after getting a goal against his former team, Napoli, ending a four-game drought.