From Saturday’s special success against Napoli to Wednesday’s crucial Champions League clash with Lyon.
The fixtures are coming thick and fast for Juventus at the moment and, one day from their UCL Matchday 4 meeting with Lyon, Gonzalo Higuain is confident the Bianconeri will complete their first major objective of the season tomorrow night: that of reaching the competition’s last 16.
Speaking to the media alongside coach Massimiliano Allegri on Tuesday, the Argentine striker had this to say of his team’s impending encounter with a side they narrowly defeated in France two weeks ago:
Looking backwards, looking forwards
“Scoring against Napoli was a unique feeling for me but my job is to give everything for the guys around me and to allow the team to play as well as possible. Finding the net is always a bonus; if a shot goes in, great, if it goes wide, you pick yourself up and make sure you take the next chance.
“Our focus now is solely on Lyon and securing a win that would see us reach the Champions League last 16, which has been the primary objective of the first half of the season. Juventus have the quality to go all the way in every competition this term.
“Mario (Mandzukic) and I have a good understanding already even if we haven’t lined up together for very long. He’s a player I know well and the more we work with each other, the stronger our connection will be. We are still only three months into the season so naturally there is plenty of work yet to be done.”
“Special” Champions League
"The Champions League is a special competition to play in. I was lucky enough to make my debut at the age of 18 and I have relished the big European fixtures ever since. A victory tomorrow sends us through to the last 16 and, after that, our goal will be to seal top spot in the remaining two games.
“However much we want to lift this famous trophy, there are a host of other sides with equal chances of knocking us out. One thing is for certain, we will be pushing our very hardest to have a successful campaign.”
Season summary
“We’re top of the league having conceded the fewest goals, we’ve kept three consecutive clean sheets in Europe and we’re outscoring most teams in Serie A too so I’d say we’ve made an excellent start to the season.
“Juventus are a club that give you all the tools you need to reach your full potential both on and off the field and I hope to repay the great support I’ve received so far with trophies come May.”
“Physical” battle on the way
“We’re well aware of the importance of tomorrow night’s match. Taking to the field every three days can be tough but this squad was built to deal with the difficulties that entails and to be in top condition at the sharp end of all three competitions come Spring.
“Lyon really made us fight for the three points at Parc-OL and we’re expecting a very similar physical battle on Wednesday night. They have come here with the belief that they can win so we will need to be on our guard.”
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