Football
Ben Gladwell, Italy correspondent 7y

Juventus' Massimiliano Allegri shrugs off Barcelona speculation

Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri has distanced himself from rumours linking him with a move to Barcelona next season.

Allegri already stated how happy he is in Turin after being touted as a potential successor to Arsene Wenger at Arsenal, but has now found himself confronted with talk of a move to Barca at the prematch news conference for his side's Coppa Italia semifinal with Napoli on Tuesday.

When asked how his English and Spanish was, the 49-year-old said that was the least of his worries.

"I struggled enough with Italian at school," he said. "But I can tell you that I've got a pretty good grasp of the Turin dialect, which is the main thing."

The Juve coach remains focused on the challenge of guiding the Bianconeri to a record sixth straight Scudetto -- his third in a row -- this season, in addition to targeting another league and cup double and trying to win the Champions League.

After a 2-0 win in Porto, Juve are well placed to reach the quarterfinals in Europe while Napoli stand between his side and a third straight domestic cup final.

"We're going to field the best team possible against Napoli," Allegri said. "At the end of the game, I will see who is still alive and who is dead, and I will leave the dead ones out [at the weekend].

"We want to put everything we have got into March. The team has improved both individually and as a team. We've got a big squad and everybody is ready, but if I play the same guys each time, we're only going to die."

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