Hellas Verona vs Juventus preview - Allegri wants to finish on a high

Posted Friday, May 29, 2015 by PA

Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri is stressing the importance of winning Sunday's game at Hellas Verona in order to avoid going into their Champions League final against Barcelona on the back of a loss.

The Serie A champions end the campaign at the Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi before facing Barca in next week's top European game in Berlin.

"This is our last test before the final," Allegri said to the Italian press. "Now we must try to maintain our level of high concentration and go to Verona with our minds on Sunday's game and not on Berlin."

Juve, under first-year coach Allegri, have already captured their first domestic double in two decades after winning the Coppa Italia against Lazio.

They head into the final round of the season 16 points clear of second-placed Roma in the standings.

"We've had an extraordinary campaign," Allegri said. "We are just missing the icing on the cake.

"We are all excited about the final and I believe we can play a great game against Barcelona."

Carlos Tevez is expected to start at Hellas having been rested in last weekend's 3-1 triumph over Napoli.

The Argentinian forward is Juve's top scorer this season with 20 league goals, the same as compatriot Mauro Icardi of Inter Milan, and both players are one goal shy of Hellas Verona's Luca Toni, who leads the Serie A goalscoring charts.

"I will give Tevez the possibility to try to overtake Toni as the top goalscorer in the league," Allegri said. "Although I believe both players are worthy of the award."

Toni, who struck twice for Hellas Verona in Sunday's 2-2 draw at Parma to leapfrog Tevez and Icardi into first place, is ready for the challenge.

"I am calm and hoping to take my chances," he said. "Finishing as the top scorer in Serie A would be very satisfying for me and my team, because it is thanks to them that I have 21 goals.

"No Verona player has ever been capocannoniere (top scorer) in Serie A."

Toni, 38, won the award by scoring 31 goals for Fiorentina in the 2005-06 campaign and came close last season when he finished in second place with 20 goals, two fewer than then Torino forward Ciro Immobile.

"He has given us so much in the past two years," Hellas coach Andrea Mandorlini said. "We hope we can help him on Sunday.

"It would be a fantastic achievement and well deserved."

Hellas are 13th in the standings, one place and two points above city rivals Chievo.