Conte takes blame for Parma equaliser

Juventus coach Antonio Conte has shouldered the blame for Parma’s equaliser in the 1-1 draw between the teams on Sunday.

A 78th-minute goal from Nicola Sansone cancelled out Andre Pirlo’s free-kick earlier in the second half.

Mirko Vucinic’s dummy was intercepted by the hosts and it caused the counter-attack which led to the equaliser, and Conte said the trickery was his idea.

“The goal was my fault because I called the dummy when Vucinic was on the one-on-one,” Conte told reporters.

Conte said his side deserved to win and was pleased that their performance was much-improved compared to their defeat to Sampdoria in their previous league outing.

“Juventus deserved to win considering everything we did today, but were playing against a tough side and give credit to Parma,” he said.

“I must say that if last Sunday I was angry about the performance against Sampdoria, today I am happy with the opportunities we created.

“On some occasions we got the final pass wrong because we were a little frenetic. We always try to play constructive football and take risks, so it’s a shame we conceded that goal.”

With Lazio overcoming Atlanta 2-0, Juventus’ lead atop the Serie A has been cut to three points after 20 games this season.