Juventus are going to Madrid to beat Atletico on Wednesday night, coach Massimiliano Allegri has insisted, playing down suggestions that he would be happy with a 1-1 draw.
The first leg of the Champions League round of 16 tie takes place at the Wanda Metropolitano, the same venue as the final, and Allegri met the media there on Tuesday evening.
In doing so, he dismissed the notion that he would take a 1-1 draw before the game, while also placing a great deal importance on Cristiano Ronaldo, now that the competition has reached crunch time.
“Would I settle for 1-1 now? These things depend on how the game goes and how well we play but they are a dangerous team so I won’t settle for anything or take anything now but it is important for us to score goals,” he told the assembled media.
“In the game, Ronaldo is going to be important for us. In the last 10 or 11 years, he and Lionel Messi have always been the top scorers. Of course he is important to what we want to do.
“But in football, it isn’t just a case of having Ronaldo so that means that you will win. You have Ronaldo and that gives you chances to win because you have the best player in the world but it isn’t a guarantee.”
The game will also see Allegri and Juventus come up against former striker Alvaro Morata, who had a controversial January switch back to Spain, this time to join the Rojiblancos after two spells with rivals Real Madrid.
“I don’t know too much how Morata is today because it was many years ago that I coached him but he has certainly grown up a lot since then,” he added.
“He is very good in these kind of big one off games but it is perhaps when it comes to consistency that he has shown is a little weaker.”
