Juventus centre-back Leonardo Bonucci wants to see ‘the attitude from the derby’ against Barcelona and says Lionel Messi can only be stopped through ‘great teamwork’.
The Bianconeri face Barcelona at Camp Nou and still have a slight chance of winning the group and Bonucci wants to see more of the same after a late win against Torino last weekend.
“We must show the attitude that gave us the win in the derby,” Bonucci said at a press conference. “An aggressive team that knew what we had to put on the pitch to get the win.
“I hope that the second half of the derby is the beginning of a new path that is difficult.
“Tomorrow, we play against a great team, but these matches are stimulating our growth.”
Juventus need a good result at Camp Nou to claim the top spot, as Barcelon are three points clear and won 2-0 at the Allianz Stadium.
“Over the years, the Champions League has proved to be a field of great achievements,” Bonucci added on the possibility of claiming first.
“We know that with our football knowledge, we can do them harm. In the first leg it was a matter of centimetres for [Alvaro] Morata’s offsides.
“With the football knowledge that our coach is giving us and with the right attitude, we will surely play a good match. Dreaming of doing the feat is not so bad.”
Bonucci pointed at the team’s ‘reaction’ in the second half against Torino, when the Bianconeri defender scored the 2-1 winner in stoppages.
“The most important thing is to have seen the reaction in the second half of the derby. It means that we have this attitude inside and we must put it into every game.
“In these days, we have had some time to train, we talked about the ingredients to play a great match. A positive result would accelerate the team’s growth path.”
Bonucci admitted the Champions League brings out something special in the players.
“The Champions League gives you different motivation and vibrations. In addition, tomorrow night we have the chance to win an important match against a great team and increase our self-esteem.
“We have the desire to improve ourselves. I’m sure that tomorrow night we will see Juventus as they should be when they enter the pitch.”
Tomorrow we will see Cristiano Ronaldo against Lionel Messi and Bonucci stressed they can only stop the Argentine as a team.
“It’s certainly a pleasure to be a part of this page in the history of football, tomorrow night, two great teams will meet and have two of the best in history in their squads.
“It will be a great match with the spotlight on these two aliens competing for individual prizes.
“Messi is stopped with great teamwork, being a champion, he makes you win games alone. With teamwork, in the defensive phase, we can stop Messi’s qualities and highlight the qualities of our alien and champion.
“I saw him charged for the challenge, but the desire to win and to be fundamental is an added value for Cristiano.
