CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Inzaghi Aims for Goal Against Man. United
Copyright � 1999 Nando Media
Copyright � 1999 Agence France-Presse
MILAN, Italy (April 13, 1999 11:16 a.m. EDT http://www.sportserver.com) - Filippo Inzaghi promised on Tuesday to make up for missed chances by scoring against Manchester United next week, as a ticket row broke out between Juventus and its own fans.
Inzaghi opened the scoring against Bologna on Sunday but then missed a penalty which could have killed the match. Instead, his team needed a late equalizer to draw 2-2 as their poor league form continues.
"We've thrown away a lot of valuable points in our last three games," said Inzaghi. "Two against AS Roma, three with Empoli and two with Bologna. We could be in fourth place by now."
Though he bungled other chances on Sunday, Inzaghi is still kicking himself about the penalty miss: "I'm just furious, " he said. "Furious. It was the first time I've ever taken a penalty for Juventus."
Now he will have to wait to bring up his 20th goal of the season between club and international duty.
"But I hope it won't be long," he said. "Saturday we've got an important game with Lazio and on Wednesday the return match against Manchester. I'd like to score the 20th against Lazio and the 21st against Manchester.
"Maybe that's asking too much," he acknowledged. "So I'll settle then for scoring against Manchester, because it would mean taking a big step towards the final in Barcelona."
However, Juventus must first finish the job they started with the 1-1 draw at Old Trafford in the Champions League semifinals.
The match at the Delle Alpi stadium will be a sell-out and the desperate hunt for tickets has already caused controversy, particularly among fans in central and southern Italy.
The CCJC, an umbrella body for the scores of regional supporters clubs around Italy, has faxed a protest letter to the club, threatening them with unspecified "initiatives" over the lack of tickets.
The club insists that 2,000 have been set aside for those living further afield, but Rosario Capocchio, head of the clubs in Italy's central Marche region summed up the feelings of many by saying: "We're fed up with it. And we're protesting."
There has also been trouble at ticket outlets in Turin following a series of computer breakdowns with the ticketing system, with at least one retailer having to call the police to calm things down.
Stadium manager Renato Opezzi defended the club, saying: "The people who are complaining are the ones who never come to the ground. We've given priority to those who show their attachment -- the season ticket-holders.
"And anyway, you would need a stadium with 200,000 seats to satisfy demand for this match and we've only got 67,000. Of those, 43,000 have gone to season ticket-holders, 6,000 have gone to the English and 2,000 have been destroyed in order to keep the two sets of fans apart.
"The rest have all been sent to regular outlets. By Saturday, there will only be 3,000 or 4,000 left."
The club have taken the unprecedented step of printing "For Juventus Supporters Only" on the tickets sold in Italy, and "For Manchester Supporters Only" on those sent to Britain, in order to keep the respective groups of fans in the right sectors of the stadium.
Any supporter with the opposing team's ticket will not be allowed in.
