Juve Triumph In Pre-Season Tournament
Saturday 28th July 2001
Juventus won the Val d'Aosta pre-season tournament on Saturday when they followed up a win over Napoli by beating Atalanta after a penalty shootout.
Having already beaten Napoli 1-0 thanks to Alessandro De Piero's header, Juventus won the friendly tournament with a 4-3 penalty shootout triumph over Atalanta.
Coach Marcello Lippi admitted afterwards that he was pleased with the way the tournament panned out. "We played two good physical matches," he explained. "The condition and the size of the pitch made it difficult for us, but we played well."
Lippi singled out the performance new-signing Cristiano Zenoni, but revealed that Uruguayan midfielder Fabian O'Neill had picked up an injury. "Cristiano played well as defender and as midfielder," said Lippi.
"We still have a lot of things to improve and I was disappointed to see O'Neill pick up a calf injury. We have lost him for a few days now which is silly because it was only a training match."
Meanwhile, defensive stalwart Paolo Montero is optimistic ahead of the forthcoming campaign. "We are a close unit and we know each other very well, but I think our defence is even stronger than ever now," he insisted.
"In Gianluigi (Buffon) and Lilian (Thuram) we have signed two real gems. I have found it easy playing with Lilian, but it's always easy to play with a champion like him."
