Massimiliano Allegri Discusses Juventus' Injury Concerns & Praises Moise Kean Following Empoli Win
Massimiliano Allegri said that teenage sensation Moise Kean had the 'mentality' of a Juventus player after the 19-year-old came on and scored the only goal in their 1-0 win against Empoli.
The Bianconeri laboured during the first half allowing their opponents to exert themselves and create some half chances. However, Allegri's side not only lost star man Cristiano Ronaldo while on international duty but also Paulo Dybala in the warm up prior to kick off.
After opting to keep Moise Kean on the bench, Allegri did get the key decision of the match right when he sent on the young Italian forward. Within three minutes of coming on, Kean met Mario Mandzukic's flick on with a ruthless half volley to secure all three point for Juventus.
As quoted by Calciomercato, the manager heaped praise on the promising forward who also scored on his debut for Italy during the international break.
"You have to have the right mentality when you play for Juventus, this is what makes the difference when you play at such high levels. Kean? He is young and he has to keep working hard that's for sure. He has a lot of qualities and he has the potential to become a great player but it is all in the mentality."
Allegri also addressed the grander scheme of things as far as Bianconeri's title challenge goes and the injuries to Ronaldo and Dybala via Juventus' official website.
"We played a bad first half, we didn't have distances and time against a good Empoli. We were better after the break where we didn’t concede anything. We needed a 1-0 that was a struggle, it's another step towards the title.
"[Dybala] with Argentina he took a blow to the calf, today he had a hardening and we didn't want to risk him.
"He [Ronaldo] did something this morning, but he went to jog. We need to see when he can run.”