Sacchi & Capello agree: Juventus & Roma were afraid

Club News

September 2, 2024 - 4:00 pm

Legendary Italian managers Arrigo Sacchi and Fabio Capello both felt that Juventus and Roma were afraid of one another on Sunday night.

The two clubs clashed heads at the Allianz Stadium for a highly-anticipated fixture. However, the outcome was rather disappointing, especially for neutrals.

Both sides combined weren’t able to forge a handful of dangerous chances throughout the match which ended in a goalless draw.

Therefore, Sacchi believes the two sides adopted a cautious approach because they were afraid of one another, although he notes that this is rather normal at this stage of the season.

“Juventus against Roma were less brilliant compared to their previous performances,” said the former Milan and Italy boss in his interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport via JuventusNews24.

“I think that both the Bianconeri and the Giallorossi were a bit afraid of one another. That’s normal, especially at this point in the season.

“I have a lot of respect for Thiago Motta and De Rossi and I’m sure they’ll do a great job. They have ideas and courage, and we saw that even last night on some occasions.

“I repeat: respect and fear were holding them back both. The proof is that the teams took very little risks and almost never shot on goal.”

Capello also had a very similar analysis. The former Juventus, Real Madrid and England coach notes that Thiago Motta is still experimenting with his team selections.

“In the first half, they were very slow. We saw two teams that were afraid of one another,” said the 78-year-old during his appearance on Sky Sport Italia via IlBianconero.

“The Juventus we saw in the first half was experimental, that is. It’s the same lineup from the first two games.

“But when new signings entered in the second half, we saw more quality, aggression and desire to do well.”