Motta: Juventus needed to 'kill off the game' sooner against Monza

Thiago Motta was pleased Juventus ended their run of draws with a 2-1 win at Monza on Sunday, but admitted they should have wrapped up the points earlier.

Juve had drawn their last four Serie A matches in a row, but first-half goals from Weston McKennie and Nicolas Gonzalez on either side of Samuele Birindelli's equaliser snapped that streak.

It was Juventus' 1,700th win in the Italian top-flight, while they are now unbeaten in their last 25 league games (W9 D16), the longest current streak without defeat in the Big-5 European leagues.

"We have always struggled against teams that defend and go on the counter," Motta told DAZN.

"We needed to kill off the game. This is part of the growth process, taking the extra risk against these teams and potentially allowing counter-attacks.

"We were in the position to do the transitions with quality in the second half when we were in the lead, but we didn't do it well enough."

Despite the win, Juventus remain nine points off leaders Atalanta but Motta said he did not look at the standings going into the festive season.

"We only look at the table at the end of the season. Before that, we take it one game at a time and try to aim for the maximum result against every opponent," he added.

FT | | We leave Monza with maximum points Powered by @EASPORTSFC #MonzaJuve pic.twitter.com/SILc7uGfWe

— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) December 22, 2024

Key midfielder Teun Koopmeiners was substituted at the break, with Motta confirming that he was uncomfortable and had been taken off as a precaution.

"Koopmeiners felt a bit of a pull in his adductor, we didn't want to risk it," he said.

Gonzalez has now scored in two matches in a row in all competitions for the first time since September-October 2023 for Fiorentina (against Frosinone and Cagliari in Serie A).

Motta praised the winger for his versatility after he played in the hole just behind striker Dusan Vlahovic.

"He can play on the right or left, as a centre-forward, but I also see him doing well there. I only ever use players in a role if they are convinced that they can do it."

Meanwhile, Gonzalez said he is happy to play out of position for Juventus following his two-month absence due to muscular problems.

"To help the team, I can also play as goalkeeper, I also let the coach know that," Gonzalez told DAZN after netting the winner.