Motta Demands More from Juventus Strikers After Champions League Draw

Juventus manager Thiago Motta expressed disappointment with his forwards after a 0-0 draw against Club Brugge in the Champions League.

Juventus manager Thiago Motta expressed his disappointment with his forwards after his side played out a 0-0 draw at Club Brugge in the Champions League on Tuesday. Motta was critical of his strikers, who struggled to create clear-cut chances, leading to Juve's 16th draw in 30 games across all competitions this season. The Italian coach emphasized the need for his forwards to contribute more to the team.

Motta acknowledged that the return of several injured players has bolstered his attacking options. “Finally, we are starting to get some players back from injury, above all in attack,” Motta told Sky Sports. However, he also expects his strikers to create more scoring chances. Motta started with Samuel Mbangula, Nico Gonzalez, and Timothy Weah, before introducing Kenan Yildiz, Dusan Vlahovic, and Francisco Conceicao off the bench. “These are all players who can give us something more. Our forwards are the ones who at the moment have to contribute more to the team.”

Despite the draw, Motta praised the performances of Manuel Locatelli and Douglas Luiz. He commended Locatelli's defensive role, saying, “It is a way of staying balanced, Manu understands the right moment to drop deep or push forward.” Motta also lauded Luiz's technical quality and physical shape, stating, “Douglas Luiz is a player with superior technical quality, in good shape physically right now and did very well in recent matches.”