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‘We deserved to win’ - Troost-Ekong on Udinese’s victory over Juventus
The Little Zebras secured a comeback win over the Old Lady to boost their chances of escaping relegation, much to the delight of the Nigerian star
William Troost-Ekong claimed Udinese deserved to beat Juventus in Thursday’s Italian topflight encounter.
Going down to Matthijs de Ligt’s 42nd minute effort, Luca Gotti’s men bounced back to win 2-1 thanks to strikes from Ilija Nestorovski and Cote d’Ivoire international Seko Fofana.
For Maurizio Sarri's men, defeat meant they would have to wait until another day to work towards clinching their ninth successive Serie A title.
According to the Nigeria international, the Old Lady’s desire to seal the Italian topflight title at Stadio Friuli spurred them to victory.
"I am very happy because of these three heavy points and also because before the game, no one would have bet on us,” Troost-Ekong told Udinese TV.
“They came here to celebrate and that charged us before the game. Today [on Thursday] we played with personality and we deserved to win.”
The former Bursaspor and Gent man switched from the defence to the midfield against Juventus. However, the 26-year-old is unbothered, assuring that he is ready to feature wherever manager Gotti wants his input.
“Well, I played in the middle for two years but after the lockdown, the manager wanted me to move to the right,” he continued.
“Obviously, he decides how we get on the field but I think as a defensive midfielder I can be more useful to the team.”
Troost-Ekong was cautioned in the 20th minute for a clumsy challenge on Aaron Ramsey - and will miss Sunday’s outing with Cagliari on Sunday over card accumulation.
Although he disputes the caution from referee Massimiliano Irrati, the defender is optimistic that without him, Udinese will get the much needed result while hoping to be back versus Lecce on July 29.
“In my opinion it was not a serious foul to have warranted a caution, however, I have confidence in the team and I know they can do it even without me,” he added.
“On the other hand, I hope to be able to help them in the challenge against Lecce.”
With Thursday’s result, Gotti’s side moved to 15th in the Italian topflight log having garnered 39 points from 35 league outings - seven points off the drop zone.
