Winning wasn’t important-Zaccheroni

(GSM) – Juventus advanced to the next round of the Europa League after a 0-0 draw in their last-32 second leg against Ajax.

For the Bianconeri it wasn’t important to win after they already defeated the Dutch side in the first leg (1-2).

The only thing that mattered to Juve manager Alberto Zaccheroni was going to the next round, where they will face Fulham.

“This evening the important thing was not to win, but to qualify, and we succeeded,” said Zaccheroni after the match..

“We tried to score in the first half and forced two or three goalline clearances. After the break with the result still 0-0, I preferred to take home the result and hope for a counter-attack.

“It seemed crucial to me that we locked down for the second half. We had come from many games in which we conceded goals and it was imperative we kept a clean sheet.”

The former Milan and Internazionale coach remains unbeaten since taking over from Ciro Ferrara, although this result ends a run of three consecutive victories in all competition.

“I haven’t been here long, what I ask of the team is that they remain tight. The system is relative, we just need to interpret it in the best way.

“Now we can read games in a certain manner and adapt.”

There was some bad news for Juventus, as Amauri limped off clutching the back of his thigh, while Diego was visibly irritated when substituted.

“Amauri has a muscular problem, we’ll evaluate it tomorrow. Obviously we hope it is nothing serious,” continued Zaccheroni.

“I didn’t notice Diego was annoyed, so I might ask him about it. I can understand his emotions, as nobody likes leaving a game, so it won’t be a problem.”