- What do you think of the coaching talent of Andrea Pirlo?
- Being a player differs from being a coach. He’s a young coach, who started working recently. He’s learning as it goes along.
- Your duel looks interesting as teacher meets his student. Have you discussed the upcoming game with Pirlo?
- We communicate from time to time. I congratulated Pirlo when he became a coach. To me he’ll always be 15- or 16-year-old kid, who made his debut during the English tour. He was very young, but incredibly smart and talented. He’ll never be my opponent. He’ll always be my player. I wish him all the best.
- Juventus are still searching for optimal formation. Is this good for your team?
- Such team as Juventus can use different formations as they have a lot of experienced and skillful performers. They can play 3-4-2-1 when attacking or something else, but eventually they use 4-4-2 when defending. Anyway, it’s not all about formation. It’s more about motivation, discipline and dedication.
- Ronaldo won’t play tomorrow. Some say Juventus do even better without him as he isn’t very helpful in terms of defense. Do you agree with that?
- He’s outstanding player, who decides a lot on the field. He can’t do everything. He needs to be in front to score. If he doesn’t score, he’s not Ronaldo. He experiences significant pressure from supporters and media, who remind of his age, so Ronaldo needs to score in every game. Juventus are stronger with Ronaldo.
- Are your players nervous before the Champions League debut?
- Of course this game is very important to our youngsters. They need to cope with nervousness and pressure as this will be a top level match. Anyway, emotions are totally natural. It’s not easy for some players to cover such a long distance within a couple of months and to reach this stage. They’ve made a huge step forward. I believe they can demonstrate decent football and raise the bar again.
