Allegri ‘happy’ at Juventus but wants talks about future

Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri has told La Gazzetta dello Sport he will not discuss his future beyond the end of this season until after the Champions League final.

The 49-year-old head coach clinched the second prize of a potential treble haul as Juve wrapped up their sixth straight Serie A title — a new Italian record — with a 3-0 victory over Crotone on Sunday.

Juve have already claimed the Coppa Italia, defeating Lazio 2-0 in Rome last week, and will tackle reigning European champions Real Madrid in Cardiff on June 3.

Allegri, who has won seven trophies in his three years in Turin, has been linked with a move abroad to Arsenal or Barcelona, but insists his full attention is focused on landing the European Cup.

When told that Juve general manager Giuseppe Marotta had said Allegri is free to make a decision about his next move, he said: “He said it depends on me?

“It depends on both of us and we haven’t spoken yet. We will sit down and decide what we have to do.

“I’m happy here, but Juve have reached such a high level that it will not be easy to maintain our status, so we’ll have to compare ideas on how to do that.

“But for now the most important thing is to win the final in Cardiff.

“Let’s take two or three days off to rest because we deserve it — the last five months have been tough — but then we have to go to Cardiff and try to win the cup.

“We must approach the match with confidence and conviction — it will be a fascinating encounter.”

Juve, who on Saturday had seen second-placed Roma close the gap to a single point, knew beating relegation-threatened Crotone would confirm the destination of the Scudetto with one game left.

On his 31st birthday, Mario Mandzukic scored the opener and Paulo Dybala’s free kick put the Old Lady out of sight before Alex Sandro banished any lingering doubts in the second half.

Veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon kept a 13th clean sheet of the Serie A season and, like his boss, was keen to sound a note of caution before Juve head to Wales.

The 39-year-old has never won the European Cup, losing two finals, and he said: “We have written some beautiful pages that will enter football’s history books.

“Winning is never easy. Staying at the top is synonymous with sacrifice and self-denial.

“If you want to win trophies then you must always go into games with your head screwed on and with your best foot forward.”

Crotone, meanwhile, can escape the relegation zone on the final day after nearest rivals Empoli lost 1-0 at home to Atalanta. They host high-flying Lazio while Empoli travel to Palermo.