MILAN: His appointment protested against, coach Massimiliano Allegri won over any last doubters as Juventus clinched a fourth successive Serie A title on Saturday with four matches to spare and a treble in sight.

Juve were rocked when Antonio Conte quit in the offseason, and further stunned when he was replaced by Allegri, who was fired by AC Milan months earlier and appeared to be the antithesis of the beloved former coach.

However, the Italian giants won 1-0 at Sampdoria on Saturday to claim the first of potentially three trophies as they face Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals, and will play Lazio in the Italian Cup final.

After dominating the entire season, Juve needed just a point to mathematically seal a 31st Serie A title.

A perfectly-placed header from Arturo Vidal, who met Stephan Lichtsteiner’s deep floated cross in the 32nd minute, gave them all three to put Juve 17 points ahead of second-placed Lazio.

“The first days here were good. I only had five or six players and we lost a friendly against Lucento!” Allegri said with laugh. “Afterwards, the lads were at my disposal and I tried to create a group, we started to work without ruining the work done in three extraordinary years.

“The players have great human qualities as well as technical ones, as to win four consecutive scudetti is extraordinary. Now we have to put this crazy evening to one side and think of the cups. I thank everyone who has helped me on this path, from the staff, to the club, to the players.”

Allegri was also the last coach before Conte to win the league, with Milan in 2011 — also in his first season in charge. Andrea Pirlo was part of that team, and has now won his fifth successive Serie A.

Although the title was never really in doubt, the relief and joy at the final whistle was clear, although the club has put their trophy celebrations on ice with a crucial Champions League semi-final first leg against Real on Tuesday.

“They gave us 10 minutes,” Juventus captain and goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon said. “Also, because the thought of Real is pulsating through us and has been pulsating for a few days.

“Our joy is inevitable, also because we have sealed it as soon as possible, allowing us to dedicate ourselves body and soul to this challenge. We need to be ready for this match so that we don’t regret anything.”

Beating Real would set this season out from the previous three title-winning campaigns, in which they underwhelmed in Europe, and would be further vindication for Allegri.

“On Tuesday we need to have the same attitude but be even better than today, because we’ll have in front of us a team of amazing players to which you can’t concede anything,” he said.

“The important thing will be going out onto the pitch knowing what we need to do against a team that can hurt you at any moment.”

On Sunday, AS Roma overtook Lazio in second spot with a 2-0 win over Genoa as their city rivals drew 1-1 at relegation-threatened Atalanta. Roma moved a point above Lazio and 15 below Juve.

Seydou Doumbia and Alessandro Florenzi, who both scored in the 3-0 win at Sassuolo midweek, fired Roma to victory in the lunchtime kickoff and they remained second after Marco Parolo cancelled out former Lazio defender Giuseppe Biava’s opener.

Published in Dawn, May 4th, 2015

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