Shakhtar Donetsk coach Mircea Lucescu says that his men will always go into matches to come out victorious ahead of the Champions League clash against Juventus.
The Ukrainian champions currently sit top of Group E and are through to the final 16 in the competition, but the Romanian trainer says the table standing will not influence his team's approach.
"Shakhtar is always there to win," the 67-year-old told Tuttosport. "If the [game on] Wednesday will end in a tie, it will mean that it was fate."
Lucescu also warned that the Bianconerimight go into the fixture with more motivation, since a loss on Wednesday combined with a Chelsea win can still prevent the Italian side from proceeding to the knockout stages of the competition.
"The fact that we are playing against Juve should be motivation enough for us. Great players thrive on these comparisons. Speaking of motivation, it is clear that Juve has more," he continued.
And the coach expressed concerns that his side could be feeling fatigued after a lot of matches in a short amount of time, especially focusing on the Brazilian players in his team.
"It has definitely been a hard time and we are starting to feel it," he said.
"All they think about are the holidays, especiallyBrazilians who cannot wait to go home, where they will find the summer."
He added: "The danger? Holidays in Brazil."
Lucescu also said he felt there were two favourites to win the Champions League trophy, adding: "In their [domestic] leagues, they are all strong teams, but in the Champions League it is becoming increasingly difficult for everyone.
"However, I like Barca [Barcelona] and Bayern [Munich]."
Shakhtar will lock horns with Juventus at Donbass Arena on December 5.
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar