Juve are still a work in progress, Tudor says before Roma test
Newly-appointed Juventus coach Igor Tudor said his team were in a bad way when he took the job and they remain a work in progress two weeks into his tenure as he prepares for his first big test in Sunday’s Serie A visit to in-form AS Roma.
Fifth-placed Juventus are a point below Bologna as they battle to ensure Champions League qualification. Roma, who have won their last seven league games, are three points behind Tudor’s team.
“I found the team in a bad moment, now we have picked ourselves up and started to pedal. How much time will it take? I don’t know and no one can know,” Tudor told reporters on Saturday.
“All life is a test. I expect a difficult match like everyone else in Serie A. You never make calculations in football. Every Sunday you have to give everything you have.”
Tudor, who replaced Thiago Motta last month after back-to-back losses to Atalanta and Fiorentina, started his tenure as Juventus coach with a 1-0 win over Genoa.
The former Croatia defender said the match against Roma, who are unbeaten in the league since December, would not be a decisive battle in the top-four race, with eight matches still left in the campaign.
“It’s an important match, but not decisive… we will face a team with a very good run of results. We want to think about ourselves and do the things we’re working on,” he added.
Tudor credited Roma’s excellent form in the league to their coach Claudio Ranieri.
“Ranieri has made the difference. There are difficulties everywhere, because they have strong players,” he said.
Tudor said midfielder Douglas Luiz and defender Andrea Cambiaso have returned from injuries and will be on the bench on Sunday, adding that Juventus will soldier on despite key defender Federico Gatti being sidelined with a calf bone fracture.
“It’s a very important absence, but let’s not cry. There are others who will take his place,” Tudor added.