Juve has returned to the elite level of European football, and their coach, Thiago Motta, is preparing for his debut in the Champions League.The Italo-Brazilian took charge of the Old Lady this summer after an excellent period at Bologna and has been given free rein to completely reshape the team, both in terms of players and playing style.At first, after two wins, things looked promising, but two goalless draws against Roma and Empoli followed, with Juve particularly disappointing in the latter match. Fans of the Bianconeri are mostly concerned with Motta’s team’s lack of potency in front of the opponent’s goal.”We need to fill the opponent’s penalty box and give our midfielders time to arrive there,” Motta said ahead of the match against PSV Eindhoven.Thiago Motta Recap #JuvePSV:- Great pride in playing CL with Juve- Two teams who want to play football- I liked the old format of the CL a lot- Respect for PSV – Koopmeiners has fit in right away- Vlahovic has to accept criticism and move on- Danilo is fit- Juve can go…— Juventus News Live (@juvenewslive) September 16, 2024 After the game in Tuscany, most of the public and fan criticism was directed at Dušan Vlahović, who was rated as the worst player on the Bianconeri team by the media, with the local newspaper Tuttosport even giving him a lower rating than a “5.”However, Motta’s faith in Vlahović remains unquestioned, and he didn’t substitute him against Empoli.”The most important thing for him is to accept things as they are. He needs to accept criticism and keep moving forward. He has scored goals before, and I’m sure he’ll score again. If we don’t concede goals, it’s thanks to him as well. If we don’t score, it’s not solely his fault. He needs clear balls in scoring positions. He feels good, he works well, he just needs to keep going and understand that criticism is part of our job,” Motta said.##EDITORS_CHOICE##Does Motta feel any pressure in the Champions League, a competition in which Juventus hasn’t had much success in recent years?”Juventus has a rich history on par with the greatest clubs, so I don’t feel any pressure. It’s up to us to represent that tradition in the best possible way. Tomorrow, we want to play our game and achieve a positive result. Empoli is behind us; I can’t wait for the match to start and to gain new experiences. It will be a great game between two teams that want to play football.”How does Juventus’ coach feel about the change in the competition format?”I really liked the previous format. This one will definitely be different because we are playing against so many different opponents. But perhaps it will be even better. It’s certainly motivating. The most important thing is to maintain respect for the opponent and not allow them to feel comfortable with possession,” said the Bianconeri’s coach.UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE – MATCHDAY 1Tuesday19:45: (1.85) Juventus (3.50) PSV (4.40)19:45: (5.20) Young Boys (4.10) Aston Villa (1.70)22:00: (3.80) AC Milan (3.60) Liverpool (2.05)22:00: (1.15) Bayern (8.00) Dinamo Zagreb (16.0)22:00: (1.33) Real Madrid (5.90) Stuttgart (9.50)22:00: (1.75) Sporting (3.60) Lille (4.90)Wednesday19:45: (1.95) Bologna (3.60) Shakhtar (4.30)19:45: (2.45) Sparta Praha (3.40) Salzburg (2.85)22:00: (1.37) Celtic (5.20) Slovan B. (10.0)22:00: (3.80) Club Brugge (3.50) Dortmund (2.10)22:00: (1.55) Man.City (4.10) Inter (6.00)22:00: (1.42) PSG (4.60) Girona (7.50)Thursday19:45: (4.20) Crvena Zvezda (3.60) Benfica (1.95)19:45: (4.40) Feyenoord (3.70) Leverkusen (1.80)22:00: (4.10) Atalanta (3.50) Arsenal (1.90)22:00: (1.80) Atl.Madrid (3.60) RB Leipzig (4.60)22:00: (1.90) Brest (3.60) Sturm (4.50)22:00: (4.60) Monaco (3.60) Barcelona (1.80)***odds are subject to change***
