Juventus manager Thiago Motta addressed the media ahead of his team’s Champions League opener against PSV Eindhoven. The Italian giants are set to make their return to Europe’s premier club competition after a year’s absence.
Motta emphasized the importance of the occasion, stating, “We arrive at this match with great pride. I can’t wait to start the game and experience these emotions. It will be a great match between two teams that want to play football, and we’ll try to bring the result to our side for us and for the public.”
When asked about team selection, Motta remained coy: “You’ll see the team tomorrow. We have many players, those who start will do their job, and so will those who come in later.”
Addressing the need for more goals, Motta explained, “We need to fill the penalty area and give our midfielders time to get there. It will be a beautiful game to play.”
On the new Champions League format, Motta shared his thoughts: “I really liked the previous format. It’s certainly different work because facing so many different teams changes things. But maybe it’s more beautiful and certainly more stimulating. We can study and evaluate different things.”
Regarding key player Koopmeiners, Motta was positive: “The team is doing well, he’s doing well. If he plays, he’ll give his best. In the summer, he made a great effort to come to us. He’s a quality addition, but we only have strong players in the squad. Honestly, it doesn’t seem like he hasn’t trained for a month. He’s doing very well and has integrated well into the group.”
Motta also addressed the pressure of the Champions League for Juventus: “I don’t think it’s pressure, but Juventus has a beautiful history that it carries worldwide. It has many fans and many things done well, and we carry this history in a positive way. We are focused on tomorrow’s game, and the rest counts for little.”
On striker Vlahovic, Motta advised, “The important thing for him is to accept things as they are, accept criticism and move on. He has scored goals, I’m sure he will continue to do so. If we didn’t concede goals today, it’s also thanks to him, if we didn’t score goals, it’s not just his fault.”
Looking ahead to Juventus’ European prospects, Motta concluded, “As high as possible, but it starts tomorrow. Compete, be competitive on every ball, have common ideas. Tomorrow it’s important to have control and the ball on our side, we must be competitive against everyone starting from tomorrow.”
