Allegri unconcerned by scrappy win

Massimiliano Allegri acknowledged Juventus were not at their best in a 1-0 win at Palermo on Saturday, but was still satisfied with the three points.

A 49th-minute own goal from Edoardo Goldaniga ultimately proved the difference between the two sides at the Stadio Renzo Barbera, although the visitors did miss a string of chances to make the scoreline more convincing.

And Allegri was more than happy to secure a second win in four days following the 4-0 midweek victory over Cagliari.

“We’ll take the points and bring them home,” he said.

“When you win 1-0 it means that you suffer, but you have to consider that winning here is not easy because they [Palermo] are a tough team. 

“We have to make fewer mistakes and from a technical point of view, we were not good and made too many misplaced passes. But I repeat that the important thing was to get the three points.”

With Paulo Dybala dropped for the first time this season, Mario Mandzukic was paired up front alongside record signing Gonzalo Higuain.

But despite the fact the duo rarely linked up effectively and missed several chances apiece, Allegri claimed to be happy with his selection decision.

“It was the first time really for the two strikers together and they didn’t combine, but then that is not in their characteristics,” he said.

“They did well to sacrifice themselves and help out in defence and in my view, they played well. 

“Considering what I asked of them, they did well and we created some chances thanks to them.”

The result cemented Juventus’ position at the top of Serie A, while Palermo continue to hover precariously above the relegation zone.

Roberto De Zerbi’s men face a trip to Sampdoria next weekend, while Juventus have a midweek Champions League date at Dinamo Zagreb to look forward to ahead of a league visit to struggling Empoli.