Barzagli welcomes Conte return

Juventus centre-back Andrea Barzagli believes Antonio Conte’s return in a week is going to be a great boost for his team.

The 43-year-old was handed a 10-month ban at the start of the season due to failure to report alleged match-fixing during his time in charge of Siena.

The punishment was subsequently reduced to four months, and Conte is set to return on the Juventus bench in a week.

“Massimo Carrera and Angelo Alessio are good, but Conte is something completely different,” Barzagli told Corriere dello Sport.

“It is not easy to face so many games without a coach with his temperament, someone who knows how to drag us along.”

Juventus have lost two out of their past four domestic matches, but remain two points clear atop the Serie A table.

Barzagli said Juve had recognised the areas in which they went wrong, with his side focused on returning to winning ways against Torino on Saturday.

“We played poorly, we know that. We’ve looked at the errors and we’re ready to start again,” he said.

“Tomorrow’s opponents Torino are a tough side, well organised and they have suffered in very few games.”