Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri has defended his decision to substitute Andrea Pirlo in Monday's Italian Supercoppa clash, which the Italian champions eventually lost to Napoli on penalties.
Juve lost to the Coppa Italia holders 6-5 in the shootout after the match in Doha finished 2-2 after extra time, with Napoli twice coming from behind to level.
The Bianconeri had two spot-kicks to win the game, but Giorgio Chiellini and Roberto Pereyra both failed from 12 yards with veteran set-piece taker Pirlo unable to take part in the shootout which saw each side take nine shots each.
Pirlo, 35, was replaced midway through the second half and he visibly took out his frustration on a water bottle. Just a minute later, Napoli equalised for the first time in the match.
"At that point of the game, we needed somebody to provide us with a little more cover," Allegri explained to RAI television. "The first 20 minutes of the second half were our worst of the game, but just when it seemed we had put it behind us, we conceded from a ball we should not have lost.
"It happens. We just suffered a bit from tiredness, but then that's normal at this stage of the season. We've lost the Supercoppa just moments from the end, we're top of Serie A and we're through to the last 16 of the Champions League -- I think we can say it's a positive season in spite of this defeat."
Goalkeeper and captain Gianluigi Buffon was also able to see the glass half-full, despite being disappointed to miss out on another trophy.
"It's been an amazing year for us with so much satisfaction, but it has ended with us finishing second in a competition we had our hearts set on," he told RAI. "Coming second for Juve is like a defeat. We've been denied a trophy we would have liked to have won, but this gives us even more anger and motivation in case we are to find ourselves in the same situation again."
For Napoli, it was sweet revenge for the Supercoppa defeat to Juve from three years ago, when their president Aurelio De Laurentiis ordered his side not to take part in the prize-giving ceremony out of protest at the refereeing decisions he felt influenced the game. In hindsight -- and after Monday's victory -- he says that was a mistake.
"This wasn't about gaining revenge for what happened in Beijing," De Laurentiis said. "I got it wrong back then. I made an anti-sporting mistake and I should have sent the team to pick up their medals. It was just a provocation from me because there was a lack of transparency in that game. I'm not accusing anybody, but that night we had a bad feeling."
The feeling was quite the opposite in Doha on Monday, however.
"I'd say this was a win for Italian football tonight," he continued. "We've had a rivalry with Juve since our recent days together in Serie B. We got lucky on penalties, but it would be nice to see this kind of effort and continuity in the league now. It was a fantastic effort, honoured by everybody."
Honoured and won by Napoli coach Rafael Benitez, who praised his side's attitude, even if it could be said it is his winning touch in cup finals which made the difference. Monday's was the 12th title of his career, but discounting the two Spanish league wins with Valencia, it was his 10th trophy won in a single game.
"In one-off matches, he doesn't let you down so that shows I was right to appoint him," De Laurentiis said. "He's a gentleman who can teach people about football. We just need patience for him to apply his methods."