Juventus aiming to wrap up Serie A title against Roma

Posted Sunday, May 14, 2017 by PA

Juventus may only need a point from their trip to Roma to clinch a sixth straight Scudetto - but Massimiliano Allegri is demanding the Bianconeri make history on their own terms.

Ahead of Sunday's title showdown at the Stadio Olimpico, the gap between first and second stands at seven points, meaning a Roma win would only delay Juve's march to yet another Serie A crown.

What ever happens in the Eternal City, head coach Allegri remains confident his men will be the masters of their own fate.

He admits winning the Coppa Italia final against Lazio on Wednesday would provide a tonic if Juve fall short in Rome, and hopes two trophies will be in the bag after next week's visit of Crotone.

Allegri, whose side also have a Champions League final with Real Madrid to prepare for, told juventus.com: "We're experiencing a special period at the moment and it is there to be enjoyed.

"The players deserve immense credit for what they have done so far but we haven't achieved anything yet.

"We have the chance to win the Scudetto on our own terms tomorrow. If we play well, we will do it.

"If we don't, we will move on to the Coppa Italia final and look to finish the job against Crotone next weekend.

"The key in moments like this is to take each game as it comes, there will be time to think about the Champions League later on."

Missing out on the big occasion will be key midfielders Claudio Marchisio and Sami Khedira, who are both injured, but Allegri insists he is happy with his alternatives: Mario Lemina, Stefano Sturaro and Tomas Rincon.

Roma suffered a major setback heading into their last-chance clash as 27-goal scorer Edin Dzeko was ruled out with the calf strain he picked up in the 4-1 win at AC Milan.

Giallorossi boss Luciano Spalletti, this week linked with the vacancy at Inter Milan, told asroma.com: "It's a shame Edin isn't available because he's become our focal point up front.

"The team know what sort of balls to play to him to make the most of his movement and runs. He's established himself as Roma's main striker.

"We'll lose something without him but we have other options we can turn to in order to win the game. We must have no excuses.

"We need to go into the game completely clear-headed and channel all our mental and physical strength into winning the game as it would give us the chance to finish second.

"We need to be focused on our objective and not let anything obscure our view."

One alternative to Dzeko is 40-year-old striker Francesco Totti, who is expected to retire from playing and become a director at the end of the season.

Spalletti was criticised after leaving the one-club man on the bench at San Siro last Sunday and teased he might include the veteran against Juve by way of an apology to Totti and his many fans.