Juventus are more determined than ever to win the Champions League after signing Cristiano Ronaldo, according to head coach Massimiliano Allegri.
Ronaldo, a €112million arrival from Real Madrid, scored his first goal for the Serie A champions on Sunday in the traditional friendly match between Juve’s senior side and youth team.
The Portugal star was a four-time champion of Europe with Madrid and scored twice in the final of 2017, in which Juve were beaten 4-1.
That was the second time in three seasons the Italian giants reached the final only to be defeated by a Spanish side, having lost 3-1 to Barcelona back in 2015.
“Naturally, we have bigger ambitions of winning the Champions League than in previous years, just as we want the Scudetto, Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana,” he told Sky Sport Italia.
“Ronaldo has above all brought experience at international level and is an extra motivation for the younger guys to aim higher. You don’t win five Ballon d’Or trophies for nothing and you can see how hard he works to get there.
“However, Real Madrid have won four of the last five editions of the Champions League and they did that through hard work. We’ve got to work, too, and this is the first time I’ve really seen the whole squad play together.”
Ronaldo was the main attraction in Villar Perosa, but Allegri thinks his team has become much stronger as a whole during the transfer window.
“This is a team built every year to achieve every objective,” he added to RMC Sport. “We have more experience now, and there have been the arrivals of Ronaldo, Emre Can, [Joao] Cancelo, [Leonardo] Spinazzola will be available, the return of [Leonardo] Bonucci…
“I would say the team has improved but you can talk about that all day long. There’s a field of green where you have to play, you have to run, you have to have great respect for your opponents.
“This year, more than ever, we want to beat everyone.” Allegri has been praised for his tactical intelligence and his ability to build effectively upon Antonio Conte’s successful tactics and winning mentality as Juventus’s manager, albeit in a less rigorous manner. He initially continued to use Conte’s trademark 3–5–2 formation, but later switched to a four-man back-line, in particular in the UEFA Champions League. Under Allegri, Juventus became slightly less aggressive and intense in their pressing off the ball while their playing style became more patient and focussed on keeping possession and gaining territorial advantage in order to conserve energy, tactics which he had previously used while at Milan.
Although Allegri’s team was still effective at winning the ball in midfield and scoring from counter-attacks, the club’s attacking play on the ball usually involved a slower build-up, which mainly consisted of short passes, and fewer long balls from Pirlo and Bonucci. Goalkeeper Buffon also continued to primarily play the ball out from the back with short ground passes to the defenders, but he also began to use deeper goal kicks out to the wings. Allegri has also been lauded for his versatility, which he demonstrated by adopting and switching between several different formations during his first season with Juventus, including the 4–3–1–2, the 4–4–2 and the 4–3–3 formations, which he had also previously adopted while at Milan in order to find the most suitable system for his players.