Juventus boss Ciro Ferrara makes his coaching debut in the Champions League as his side face Bordeaux for their opening Group A fixture.
“Tomorrow we will not play a normal game, as the first match of the group phase always carries some risks and Bordeaux were the most dangerous team in the third seeding pot,” said Ferrara, who won the competition as a player with Juve.
“This will be a special game for me as I am a debutant in Europe, so I’m asking my players for maximum concentration. The UEFA Champions League is a different competition from Serie A and to reach the first knockout round it is necessary to avoid any errors.
“I have beautiful memories of (Bordeaux coach) Laurent Blanc. We recently met in Nyon and it was a great pleasure; he is working well and we respect each other.
“We have clear ideas about the team and the players we will face on the pitch. Bordeaux will field many talented players, like Yoann Gourcuff, Marouane Chamakh and Yoan Gouffran. They defend strong, are fast on the counterattack and dangerous from dead balls.”
Ferrara is without Diego, Alessandro Del Piero, Zdenek Grygera, Mohamed Sissoko and Hasan Salihamidzic though injury, while Giorgio Chiellini is serving a one-match suspension.
Bordeaux coach Laurent Blanc, who has no injury concerns, confirmed that he had been studying Juventus’ play this season.
“I’ve been watching Juventus games since the start of the season and I know their style is very physical with a lot of pressing. They will miss Diego, but Juventus have a very strong squad and can call on Sebastian Giovinco instead.
“I’m very happy to see Ciro Ferrara has been getting good results in his first Serie A games. I have known him for a long time, since we played together with Napoli. He was very young then but he was already a leader on the pitch and even if I didn’t know he would become a coach, I already knew he had great qualities and now he is showing them as a coach.
Bordeaux have never won in Italy, where their record reads two draws and five defeats from seven previous trips. Last season they lost home and away to Roma in the group stages.
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