Juventus coach Igor Tudor is not very upset that his team no longer has to play matches at the Club World Cup. The Croatian saw that his players had a tough time on Tuesday in the round of 16 match against Real Madrid.
Juventus lost 1-0 in Miami to a goal by Gonzalo García. During the match it was about 31 degrees Celsius. Although it was even hotter during some other World Cup matches, Tudor saw that his players had a lot of trouble with the heat.
“The conditions were very tough,” the coach said at the press conference. “Towards the end of the match, ten players asked for a substitution. They were very tired.”
According to Tudor, the players need rest. “What also plays a part is that we are now at the end of a long season. The energy is gone. And then there’s the heat and humidity on top of that. My players gave everything, but unfortunately it wasn’t enough.”
Juventus starts the new Serie A season on August 24 with a home match against Parma. “Now we have three weeks of rest,” Tudor continued. “The World Cup is a great tournament, but now we have to prepare for the new season.”
Real plays Borussia Dortmund in the quarterfinals, who were too strong for the Mexican Monterrey with 2-1. The other quarterfinals are Fluminense-Al Hilal, Palmeiras-Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain-Bayern Munich.