Jittery Juve Looks to Get Back on Track Against Bologna
ROME (AP) -- When Juventus looked ready to cruise to a record 26th straight Serie A title, Alessandro Del Piero and Filippo Inzaghi could laugh off rumors of an ongoing feud between the Turin squad's formidable striker tandem.
But after two straight losses sliced their Italian soccer league lead from nine to three points, Juventus has little to chuckle about as it travels for another tough match at Bologna on Sunday.
To make the point, Del Piero and Inzaghi held an unusual joint press conference this week to affirm their shared commitment to win the league title -- and quell reports of rivalry that have increased since the pair of Juventus shutout defeats and a goal-less national team loss to Spain.
"It's one thing to point out the problem Juventus has on offense, of which [both of us] play a part. It's something else to talk about our relationship ... things completely invented," said Del Piero, who appeared in team warm-ups alongside his fellow striker. "These and other things have really made me angry."
Inzaghi added that "intelligent people understand that one player's fortune depends on the other... And it is therefore absurd to be jealous of each other."
Though the testy press conference may help silence innuendoes of locker-room arguments about missed passes and competition over individual statistics, it did little to assure that Juventus (17-8-3) will get back to its winning ways.
The pair, and their Turin teammates, can only do that on the field.
Bologna on the road is the third in a series of five straight matches against clubs in the top-half of the standings. Juventus failed the first two tests, losing 2-0 to defending champion AC Milan and 1-0 on Saturday to second-place Lazio.
With Internazionale of Milan and Fiorentina to follow, the match against Bologna (8-11-9) gives the Turin squad a chance to recharge for the final stretch in the race for the league crown.
And the hosts, who have gotten all but one of their wins on the road, know that Juventus is still the team to beat.
"Even if they have lost two straight, it is a crisis of results not of performance," said Bologna striker Giuseppe Signori.
Signori's former team, Lazio, will have to rebound from a crushing 5-2 Champions League defeat Wednesday to Valencia. The Rome squad will be at home against Perugia, looking for their third straight Serie A win.
The other Italian top division matches include Torino vs. Parma on Saturday afternoon and Udinese vs. Internazionale at night. Additional Sunday matches feature Cagliari vs. Verona, Lecce vs. AS Roma, Piacenza vs. Bari, Reggina vs. Venezia and the night match of Milan vs. Fiorentina.
