Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri insists that Barcelona’s shock 2-0 loss to Malaga on Saturday will not affect how the Italian champions prepare for their upcoming Champions League clash.
Barca will travel to Turin on Tuesday for the quarterfinal first leg on and Allegri believes his side will need to be “on point” to take anything from the match.
“We have to believe we can go through,” Allegri told Mediaset Premium after Saturday’s 2-0 Serie A win over Cheivo. “[The defeat at Malaga] is irrelevant, because Barcelona are accustomed to playing [big European games].
“We were coming off a couple of tough games and it was only natural we’d be a little tired, so in my view this was one of our toughest games of the season, as we had used up so much energy with [two clashes with] Napoli.
“There’s no point sitting here, thinking we’re playing against Barcelona — we have to play and that is all. From [Sunday], we think about Barcelona, but only because it’s the next game — the next game is always the most important.
“When you have Leo Messi, Neymar, Luis Suarez and Iniesta, not to mention the others, it’s rare you get an off night. We have to be on point, ready to attack at the right time and defend when it’s necessary.”
Big-money recruit Gonzalo Higuain echoed his manager’s sentiments, saying that there is a mutual respect between the two European heavyweights.
“Now we can focus on Barcelona and rest so we can reach that game in top condition,” he said.
“We must be calm as it’s a very hard match against a great team, but we respect them just as they respect us.”
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