Massimiliano Allegri addressed the first leg against Villarreal: “It is not an easy Round of 16, and we have 50 percent chances of advancing. They are in good form like us. They are experienced and have a competent coach. We will have to pay attention to details and create favorable episodes. We will need to be patient and ordinate, as we can not clinch the qualification tomorrow already.”
“The Derby was hard-fought, and we played well. In 20 days, we went from fighting for fourth place to being in the running for the Scudetto. We signed important players, but Dusan Vlahovic is making his Champions League debut tomorrow, and he can not shoulder so many responsibilities. I have to shield him. He will be much better once he has played 60 or 70 games in this competition. It is a matter of handling pressure. A newspaper even dedicated a whole page to him not scoring. I agree that we will have better chances of winning the title next year, but you can not have everything right away.”
Allegri updated on his team’s fitness ahead of the Villarreal clash, as Paulo Dybala and Daniele Rugani will miss ten days with thigh pulls: “Leonardo Bonucci practiced with us today, and he was not in pain. Having him with us tomorrow would be a success. Luca Pellegrini and Adrien Rabiot are fine after knocks. Federico Bernardeschi is still rehabbing. Alvaro Morata and Vlahovic will definitely start tomorrow, while I have doubts in the midfield. I am very happy with Arthur. Weston McKennie can play everywhere since he is a strong cutter. His traits are unique.”
The coach concluded: “We have grown mentally as time passed. We would not have been able to handle some negative situations at the start of the season.”