Motta names six Juventus players who will miss Atalanta clash, lauds Koopmeiners | OneFootball

Juventus coach Thiago Motta revealed his squad will be missing six players for Sunday’s big Serie A clash against Atalanta.

Despite their recent cup woes, the Bianconeri have seemingly found their footing in the league, as they currently ride a five-match winning streak that catapulted them back into the Scudetto scene. Nevertheless, the moment of truth has arrived, as the Turin-based giants are now up against a direct challenger in the shape of La Dea.

Therefore, Motta insists his team is fully focused and determined to achieve a positive result while listing the six players who will miss the encounter due to various injuries.

“We have had a very good week of work. Those who are selected tomorrow are ready to face a strong team like Atalanta,” said the manager in his pre-match press conference (via the official Juventus website).

“[Gleison] Bremer, [Juan] Cabal, [Arkadiusz] Milik, [Jonas Jakob] Rouhi, Douglas Luiz, [Francisco] Conceicao and [Nicolo] Savona will be unavailable for the challenge against the Bergamo side. We are completely focused, we are aware of the quality of the opponent and we don’t waste energy being distracted by anything else.

(Photo by Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images)

“We have to put everything we have worked on into practice to put in a great performance and get the win. The boys have been working hard since day one: we have to work to find a balance, they put a lot of responsibility on themselves but sometimes this gives an advantage to the opponent because they play with added pressure.

“I have great confidence in them because they work hard, because they are a team and they know exactly where they are and where they want to go.”

“We need to solely concentrate on the challenge against Atalanta, as we always do for any match. Our philosophy is to focus on the next match.  In the reverse fixture we put in a great performance, but it was not enough to win, that explains the level of who we will face. We will continue to do what we have to do to get the win.”

Motta also reserved special praise for Teun Koopmeiners who will be up against his former teammates, as well as Kenan Yildiz.

“Koopmeiners has done well since he arrived. You always have to try to improve, I am very happy for him for the goal he scored in the last game. He is a very important guy both on and off the pitch, he has helped a lot and will continue to do so because he is very professional.

“Yildiz is doing well and must continue to develop as he is doing. He is very young and there is huge potential for improvement. He knows it, he’s humble, he’s willing to learn. He has never stopped this year, he is always there.”