Angelo Ogbonna analyses the Bianconeri’s latest league victory over
Bologna before previewing their trip to Portugal to take on Benfica in
Thursday’s Europa League semi-final first leg
After a win over Bologna that he believes sent out a strong
statement of intent to Serie A chasers Roma, Angelo Ogbonna has said
that the Bianconeri’s minds are now firmly on achieving another victory
when they travel to Lisbon on Thursday.
Benfica await at the Estadio da Luz, but first Antonio Conte’s men
had to overcome a hurdle that was by no means easy at home to the
Rossoblu last night.
Speaking about the difficulty of negotiating yet another side who
did all in their power to close gaps at the back and block the
Bianconeri onslaught at Juventus Stadium, Ogbonna began: “Winning wasn’t
a simple task. It was difficult finding space, but Paul did well to
break the deadlock. Only right at the end was there an element of risk.
“It’s never easy being just one goal ahead, but we successfully
held on to achieve our objective of sending out a message to Roma and
making clear that we never give up.”
The Giallorossi are not lying down either, chalking up another
victory last night away at Fiorentina, but Ogbonna went on to underline
that until Friday it’s the Europa League that’s at the forefront of Juve
minds.
“Now it’s time to concentrate on Europe. Benfica are a renowned
team who play good football, and we’re already looking ahead to
Thursday’s game.
“We’ll be facing a fiery atmosphere so we’ll look to prepare for the fixture as best we can.”
The 25-year-old defender concluded by expressing his satisfaction at being back to top physical fitness.
“I’ve recovered well after the injury, and I’m happy with the work myself and the fitness trainers did to help me bounce back.”
Source; Juventus.com