Juventus coach Thiago Motta reflected on his team’s crushing 4-0 defeat to Atalanta, a result that effectively ended their hopes of competing for the Serie A title. Speaking to the media after the game, Motta expressed disappointment with his side’s performance and highlighted the challenges of managing a young and inexperienced squad.
On the penalty decision and the team’s reaction:
“A debatable penalty,” Motta remarked. “I’m not sure if it was really there. After that, we tried to react by pushing forward, but we struggled. We’re a young team, and we lost our composure. That first goal hurt us deeply, and we gave players like Lookman opportunities to exploit counterattacks.”
On the technical errors and lack of balance:
“The match started with the intention to control possession, but after conceding the first goal, everything changed,” he explained. “We made a series of technical mistakes, especially after falling behind. Atalanta are very strong on the counterattack, and we suffered because of that. It’s disappointing that a game was decided by a penalty that I’m not sure was justified.”
On the heavy defeat at home:
“This is one of the heaviest defeats we’ve experienced here,” Motta admitted. “It’s different from our loss to Empoli. We started well today, but after the penalty incident, we fell apart. With such a young team, it’s hard to have a decisive reaction in moments like these. The lack of experience was evident.”
Despite the setback, Motta urged his team to focus on their next challenge against Fiorentina: “We are sad and disappointed by this result, but we must move on. The Scudetto talk ends here for us—we need to regroup and prepare for what’s ahead.”
