Legro: Zenit impressed me

Legro: Zenit impressed me
Thursday 18 September, 2008

Juventus defender Nicola Legrottaglie has paid tribute to last night's vanquished opponents Zenit St Petersburg.

The Old Lady triumphed on their return to the Champions League courtesy of a fantastic Alessandro Del Piero free-kick.

But they were given a thorough examination by their Russian opponents, who certainly impressed ex-Chievo stopper Legrottaglie.

“We have to praise Zenit because in all my years as a player I have rarely been so impressed with an opposition team,” he insisted.

“In fact at one point I told Giorgio Chiellini that we should be happy if it ended 0-0.

“But then I must also compliment Juventus, as it shows our quality and tenacity that we were able to beat this Zenit side and to keep a clean sheet.”

However, Legro wasn't so happy with the state of the pitch in Turin and the European match ball.

“The pitch was in a terrible state,” he moaned. “It was just earth tonight.

“But worse still was that we train all week with a ball that's about twice the size. It's tricky for goalkeepers to deal with these strange bends.”

*chn4