© EuroFootball.com
"Juventus" victories mastermind Antonio Conte does not consider his team as favorites to win the UEFA Europa League. During the press conference held before the round of 16 matches of the second most powerful tournament on the Old Continent against the Turkish team "Trabzonspor", the Italian was modest and did not make empty promises. "In the next 52 days, we will have to play 16 matches, so I want each player to be ready to step onto the field when the time comes. I will need all of them," said the coach. "We are playing in the national championship and also in the Europa League, where we want to perform as well as possible. We will try to prepare for each game as best as we can and rotate players when necessary." "The Europa League is an extremely prestigious tournament, so we have to remain strong both physically and mentally. I have full confidence in my team," explained A. Conte. "We have been participating in European tournaments for the second year in a row, so winning the Europa League would be something unbelievable. We know we made mistakes in the Champions League, and that is our fault, but now we are playing in a different tournament and we want to achieve as much as we can." "Many consider us favorites to win the Europa League, and I am thankful for that, but I am not so sure. Regardless of the reality, we know that a very long road awaits us until the final," assured the former Juventus captain. When asked about the "Trabzonspor" team, A. Conte replied: "We will play against a team that finished the group stage in first place ahead of 'Lazio'. We also know that they know how to attack and have experienced players like Zokora, Bosingwa, and Malouda. Right now, only these matches are on our minds." On Thursday, the match at the "Juventus" stadium will start at 8:00 PM Lithuanian time.
