‘Ashamed’ Juventus star agrees with Motta: “We didn’t give enough for the shirt” | OneFootball

Juventus goalkeeper Mattia Perin admits he and his teammates were too complacent in their Coppa Italia tie against Empoli.

Despite their challenging campaign, the Bianconeri were, by all accounts, the favourites to beat the struggling Tuscans, especially with the contest held at the Allianz Stadium.

However, it was the Serie A minnows who prevailed in the penalty shootouts after securing a 1-1 draw in normal time.

Moreover, the visitors could have scored several goals in the first half, so many felt the Bianconeri should have been trailing by several goals at the half-time break.

Hence, Thiago Motta expressed his shame after the contest, insisting that his players should be feeling the same too. He also blamed himself for failing to convey the importance of the contest to his squad.

While Perin wasn’t necessarily to blame for the outfielders’ poor display, his comments aligned with his manager’s, admitting he and his teammates didn’t do enough to earn a result.

“We put in a first half performance of which we feel ashamed, I’m struggling to find the right words,” said the former Genoa goalkeeper in his post-match press conference as published by the official Juventus website.

“We failed to recognise the importance of this match and we all have to take a long hard look at ourselves. We are sad and disappointed, we must understand that we did not give enough for the shirt.

“It is unacceptable to fail to progress through the quarter-finals at home, it is a huge disappointment. We were not at the level required when you play in this shirt and for this club.”

Juventus have thus suffered their second elimination in the space of a week, having been dumped out of the Champions League last Wednesday at the hands of PSV Eindhoven.