Allegri demands improvement for quarters
TURIN - Scoring more goals and shoring up in defence will be key if Juventus are to avoid another Champions League quarter-final exit after cruising past Porto and into the last eight, said coach Massimiliano Allegri.
Beaten 2015 finalists Juventus put one foot into the last eight of Europe's premier club competition last month with a 2-0 win away to 10-man Porto.
And the Turin giants were impervious Tuesday on their way to stretching their unbeaten run in European competition to 21 games despite failing to build on their numerical superiority after Porto, as they did in the first leg, lost a man before the half-time interval.
Nuno Espirito Santo's visitors failed to pose any real threat, and any hope of an upset was ended on 40 minutes when Paulo Dybala drilled past Iker Casillas from the penalty spot after Maxi Pereira's expulsion for handball.
Juventus cruised through 3-0 on aggregate, but Allegri was less than satisfied after the hosts failed to make their advantage pay in a listless second half that saw Gonzalo Higuain and Mark Pjaca fire wide of the target.
"In the Champions League we are scoring less goals on average than other sides with respect to the number of chances we create," said the 49-year-old Italian, who has reportedly held talks with Premier League giants Arsenal.
"In defence, we also have to improve. In the second half, despite our numerical advantage, we did the opposite of what we did in Porto.
"In these situations you either up the rhythm and pressure and attack, or you sit back and pass the ball around till it gets boring for everybody.
"We didn't do either. We were very good in the first half, but less so in the second. Thankfully, we had our last eight ticket practically assured, but we'll have to work on this for the future.”
