Juventus coach Massimiliano
Allegri used English on Thursday to express his delight at his
side qualifying for the Champions League last 16 with a game to
spare thanks to Wednesday's 1-0 win over Manchester City in
Turin.
"Mission: accomplished!" Allegri posted on his Twitter
account after a goal by Croatia forward Mario Mandzukic put the
Italian champions top of Group D with 11 points from five games.
"How do JU feel about it?", he added before thanking the
club, team and fans for a "magnificent evening" on Wednesday.
Juve, who completed the domestic double last season and
reached the final of the Champions League, are seeking to
recover from an awful start to their Serie A campaign that has
seen them suffer four defeats already this term.
They are hoping to build on a run of three consecutive
Serie A wins, which have lifted them to sixth in Serie A, nine
points behind leaders Inter Milan, and gradually haul themselves
back into the title race.
"It was a perfect evening and it boosts our morale," said
Juve midfielder Stefano Sturaro.
"You breathe in an air of happiness after a match like
that.
"It wasn't easy. The other teams in our group were good.
But we showed we could ride out the difficult moments and we
qualified thanks to our quality.
"On Sunday we'll go to Palermo to win," he added referring
to Juve's next league game.
"We want to give an aggressive display from the beginning
to bring home the result".
The mood at Italy's other Champions League contender, AS
Roma, is very different after Tuesday's 6-1 drubbing at
Barcelona.
AS Roma Chairman James Pallotta on Wednesday told
executives he was upset by the Giallorossi's capitulation at the
Camp Nou, sources close to the club told ANSA.
Coach Rudi Garcia, who was also in charge when Roma lost
7-1 to Bayern Munich last year, has not been given an ultimatum,
but is under closer scrutiny, they said.
AS Roma, who are fourth in Serie A, three points behind
Inter, are still well positioned to qualify for the last 16 of
the Champions League despite the spanking at Barcelona.
The Giallorossi just need a win against BATE Borisov at
the Olimpico in two weeks' time to be sure of moving ahead to
the knock-out stage.
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