Juventus Can Win Without Zidane and Davids Says Conte
TURIN, Italy, Oct 25 (Reuters)(DS) - Skipper Antonio Conte believes Juventus
can still reach the second stage of the Champions League -- despite losing
Zinedine Zidane and Edgar Davids for their crunch match in Athens against
Panathinaikos.
Two red cards in four minutes during Tuesday's 3-1 defeat to Hamburg SV have
left the Italian giants needing a win in Greece to be sure of a place in the
second phase.
Zidane was dismissed for head-butting Hamburg defender Jochen Kientz in the
29th minute and Davids was booked for protesting the decision.
Four minutes later, the Dutch international was sent off after a late,
lunging challenge on Hamburg's Danish midfielder Stig Tofting.
Winning in the hostile home of Panathinaikos is never easy and Juve must do
so on November 8 without their two key central midfielders.
JUVENTUS CAN PASS THE TEST SAYS CONTE
However, Conte believes his side have the experience and ability to pass the
test. "In our past two campaigns we have made it to the second round by
winning our last game and so I don't see why that should be a problem," he
said. "Now we have to go to Athens and win, without worrying about what is
going on elsewhere -- it is not an easy task but it is within our reach,"
said Conte.
An exit from the Champions League would mean a significant loss of pride and
revenue for the Serie A title hopefuls. But even if Juve secured passage to
the second phase, Zidane is unlikely to play much of a role. The former
World Player of the Year can expect a lengthy suspension from UEFA.
Zidane was only allowed to play against Hamburg after an appeal halved his
suspension for a red card against Deportivo Coruna on September 26 from two
games to one.
European soccer's governing body are likely to take a dim view of one of the
game's major role models behaving in such a violent manner.
Ancelotti described the behaviour of his two midfielders as "strange" but
disciplinary problems are becoming worryingly frequent for the Turin team.
RED CARDS FOR JUVENTUS
Last season's European campaign ended with a 4-0 UEFA Cup fourth round
defeat to Spain's Celta Vigo after Conte and defender Paolo Montero were
sent off in the first-half.
This season, Davids and defender Ciro Ferrara were sent-off in an Italian
Cup tie against Brescia. Zidane's dismissal on Tuesday was reminiscent of
his sending off for France in the World Cup finals in 1998 after he stamped
on Saudi Arabia defender Fuad Amin during his side's 4-0 win.
Zidane was suspended for two games and many felt that his loss of control
could cost his team the ultimate prize. But he returned for the quarter
final and scored twice in the 3-0 win over Brazil in the final.
Juventus will be hoping they can stay in European action long enough this
season to allow the Frenchman to make a similar impact on his return.
