Juventus coach Antonio Conte was left gutted by his
team's self-destruction as they let a two-goal lead slip to lose 4-2 at
Fiorentina.
The Serie A champions went into Sunday's match unbeaten
against Fiorentina at Stadio Artemio Franchi since 1998 and that run looked
like it would continue as they went into half-time two goals up.
Carlos Tevez opened the scoring from the penalty spot
before Paul Pogba pounced on a Juan Cuadrado error, but it was a completely
different story after the break, with Giuseppe Rossi's own spot-kick sparking
the comeback.
Rossi then fired in the equaliser from outside the area,
which was soon followed by Joaquin's composed finish and the Italian forward’s
third nine minutes from time, leaving Conte bemused.
He told Sky Sport Italia: "I think the game was
practically closed. We were in control in every way, even in the second half
and had some more great chances to add to our tally.
"Then something strange and unthinkable happened. We
lost a match that we had been dominating. How do we explain it?
"In 10 minutes we destroyed all the hard work, both
during and before the game. We managed to allow Fiorentina back into it and
concede odd goals.
"This is football. We have to take these 10
nightmare minutes and learn from them. I continue to say this year will be
very, very difficult.
"In these 10 minutes we did everything to help
Fiorentina get back into the match, more than they had been at any stage. There
are huge regrets.
"We struggled more last season and got a draw,
whereas this time until the 70th minute it was all Juventus. This is football,
nothing can be taken for granted."
With a UEFA Champions League tie against Real Madrid
coming up on Wednesday, it had been suggested that Conte's men were more
concentrated on that, but the 44-year-old did not feel that was the case.
He added: "This was an important game in a fiery
atmosphere, so we could not be distracted by Real Madrid. We were in the match
from the start and only went wrong in those 10 minutes.
"It has happened a few times this season that we’ve
conceded chaotic goals. We have to work on it. That is all."
Culled from soccerway
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