Allegri urges Juventus to end Scudetto race
It is time for Juventus to "grab the bull by the horns" and end the Serie A title race, according to Massiliano Allegri.
Massimiliano Allegri has urged Juventus to bring an end to the Serie A title race once and for all against Crotone on Monday (AEST).
The reigning champion needed only a point in its previous outing against Roma to guarantee a sixth title in a row, but a 3-1 defeat forced it to postpone the celebrations.
A win for Roma against Chievo on Sunday has left Juve requiring a win to prevent the Scudetto battle from continuing until the final day of the season.
With the Coppa Italia in the bag after Thursday's (AEST) 2-0 win over Lazio and a UEFA Champions League final to come against Real Madrid on 4 June (AEST), Allegri wants the second part of a possible treble to be secured.
"We must win the Scudetto tomorrow," he said on Sunday (AEST). "We come out of the Coppa final with an amazing result as nobody had ever won three in a row, and that has given us great strength to go forward.
"The team had two good training sessions. [Monday AEST] will see a great performance and it will be the one that wins the Scudetto.
"Crotone have put together 17 points in their last seven games, I think 10 points from four away fixtures, they have conceded very few goals and are extremely dangerous on the counter-attack.
"The team has to play calmly but also with the determination we saw after the defeat to Roma. I told the boys that we're sick of the sight of each other, so let's win the Scudetto and have some time off!"
Sami Khedria has been recalled to the squad after missing the past two games with a thigh muscle injury, but Allegri says the Germany international will not feature.
Paulo Dybala and Claudio Marchisio are both to be included in a strong starting line-up, however.
Allegri explained: "Paulo Dybala is fine. We'll have [Gianluigi] Buffon in goal, Dani Alves, [Leonardo] Bonucci, [Giorgio] Chiellini and Alex Sandro in defence. Claudio Marchisio recovered well from the final and he will play.
"We're in a wonderful moment of the campaign. We need the fans to be behind us, as it's the most important game of the season, the one that decides the Scudetto.
"This is the moment when we have to grab the bull by the horns."