The words of Conte

Antonio Conte says Juventus expected a battle in Lecce and stands up for new signing Marco Borriello after a message from fans.

The striker arrived on loan from Roma this week, but supporters held up a huge banner ahead of the 1-0 victory at the Stadio Via del Mare that read: ‘Borriello, mercenary without honour or dignity.’

“Borriello is to all intents and purposes a Juventus player and I think he explained that he never actually ‘rejected’ this move last year,” said Conte.

“The Bianconeri simply didn’t have the funds to offer a permanent deal at the time and the player and Milan preferred to send him to Roma, but he did not reject Juve. Only a madman could reject this jersey.”

Borriello may be needed earlier than expected, as Fabio Quagliarella fractured his cheekbone during the Lecce game and will undergo surgery on Monday.

“I had said beforehand that it was always a danger going into the first game after the break, especially for a Juventus side that is still unbeaten.

“The three points are satisfactory, though we could’ve finished off the match earlier and saved ourselves some suffering. I think we could’ve done better in terms of performance. We’re working to be in shape for the entire campaign and not just one game.”

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